CPD, training and skills in Local and Regional Economic Development
Expert knowledge, proven frameworks, and practical tools for local authority officers, consultants, and practitioners delivering regional growth strategies, innovation programmes, and place-based policy – built from 32 years of working in the field
- 15 hours of on-demand courses covering the 8 disciplines of local and regional economic development
- Practical workbooks (e.g. FDI from scratch; develop a great project idea)
- Community, chatrooms, discussion
- Mentoring and coaching support
- Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
- Skills and training in local and regional economic development
The Local and Regional Economic Development Handbook
The Practitioner’s Guide for Everyone Whose Work Shapes Places and Economies
Whether you work in planning, property, higher education, skills, government, or community development — the economic forces reshaping UK places are directly reshaping your work. And if you work in economic development itself, you’ve never had a handbook like this one.
The Local & Regional Economic Development Handbook is the comprehensive, honest, practitioner-authored guide to how local economies work, why economic development so often fails to deliver what it promises, and what those working in and around the field can do differently.
Endorsements
“A big shout out to Glenn Athey who has taken his many years in economic development consultancy and created Economic Development World (www.economicdevelopment.world), the UK’s first online community for local and regional economic development that provides CPD, on-demand lean learning, a community of peers and workbooks. Built on three pillars of accelerated learning, shared knowledge and community support, it is a fabulous resource for our industry.
“From what I have seen already, this has the potential to create a step change in how the UK delivers economic development, putting the skills and development of practitioners, whether newbies or old hands, front and centre. Get yourselves signed up, get involved and support this great initiative.”
Adam Breeze, Breeze Strategy
“2026 has to be the year that economic development professionals take the important steps, from policy comment, strategic views, to decisive practictioner application and delivery. Critical is to have an accessible platform for CPD, training, and a focused community to ask questions and discuss best practice and aspects of local and regional economic development. I am delighted that an established and respected colleague Glenn Athey has founded and created this resource on www.economicdevelopment.world .”
Mark Pearson, Head of Economic Development, Reading's Economy & Destination Agency (REDA)
Want Local and Regional Economic Development Strategies that Actually Get Implemented?
Want to Persuade Political Leaders to Invest in Economic Development?
Struggling to Make the Case for Innovation Funding?
Founded by Glenn Athey, an Economic Development Professional and Advisor With 32 Years of Supporting UK Economic Development
LPIP Fellow, University of Birmingham
Author of "The Local and Regional Economic Development Handbook"
Latest News and Advice
The Hidden Cost of Vague Objectives
𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗮 𝗛𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗩𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝗢𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀. (and it will make or break your economic development initiatives) 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵, 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴. → Simply having a "mission statement" doesn't...
What’s the Best Cache Plugin for WordPress? 5 Options Compared for 2025
Your site is slow. People leave. Google shrugs. You tweak your theme, compress your images, scream into the void. Still slow… The problem might be your cache plugin, or rather the cache plugin you're not using yet.
Coming soon… a day in the life of an economic development consultant
I'll soon be starting a new semi-daily blog highlighting my work, my challenges, mistakes, caffeine habit and frustrations with technology... and don't get me started on public procurement exercises!!! trying to add a bit of humour, with insight and reflection to...
How to Get Your Public Funding Approved for Local Economic development
Getting Your Local Economic Development Funding Approved can be a Challenge if You have no or Little Experience in This! Based on our 𝘌𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘛𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘌𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘋𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴, here are key tips for success: 1️⃣ 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: Know your organization's...
Master The 7 Executive Tasks in Local Economic Development
𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝟳 𝙀𝙭𝙚𝙘𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙏𝙖𝙨𝙠𝙨 𝙞𝙣 Local 𝙀𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙘 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩: 1 - Set clear objectives for your local economy, programme, service or agency 2 - Develop winning ideas for your local economy 3 - Write a successful board or committee paper for your local economy service...
Asked to Write a Board or Committee Paper About Your Local Economy at Short Notice? Essential Guidance
We've all been there - "Glenn, we (you) need to write a board paper about this local economic development initiative, its due in tomorrow by 5pm. I'm assuming you can get on with this no problem?!" But writing a board paper from zero experience isn't easy. So here's a...
External news
Regional Economies: Larry Fink says today’s economic anxiety stems from people increasingly feeling like capitalism isn’t working for them
Source: Regional Economies Author: Eleanor Pringle Date published: 2026-03-23 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] In just weeks, Wall Street has gone from optimistically waving off the U.S. and Israel’s strikes on Iran as a short-term blip to...
Local Economies (UK): Trump’s economic shocks are derailing Britain’s building plans
Source: Local Economies (UK) Author: Phillip Inman Date published: 2026-03-21 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Donald Trump has done his best to crush the green shoots of the global, post-pandemic economic recovery – nowhere more so than in...
Combined Authorities (England): ‘The new deal for young people goes to the heart of Labour’s mission’
Source: Combined Authorities (England) Author: Andrew Pakes MP Date published: 2026-03-17 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Peterborough helped to build modern Britain through our bricks, engineering and railways. This industrial heritage...
Regional Economies: ‘Very damaging’: how the Iran war is hitting energy-intensive industries
Source: Regional Economies Author: Alex Daniel and Lisa O’Carroll Date published: 2026-03-17 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] In its 160-year history, Somers Forge’s furnaces in the Black Country have cast steel columns for the Bank of...
Local Growth and the United Kingdom: Chancellor’s growth plan sets key principles for UK-EU alignment
Source: Local Growth and the United Kingdom Author: unknown Date published: 2026-03-17 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Reeves sets out the next phase of the government’s growth plan to build a stronger, more secure economy in an uncertain...
Local Growth and the United Kingdom: Oxford-Cambridge corridor to be UK’s “Silicon Valley”
Source: Local Growth and the United Kingdom Author: unknown Date published: 2026-03-17 [original article can be accessed via hyperlink at the end] Chancellor set to double funding for Oxford–Cambridge corridor in move to make it UK’s “Silicon Valley”. Funding will...