Corporate Plan 2022/23 to 2027/28

This priority contributes to delivery of the following outcomes or aspects of our vision:

• People and businesses are increasingly able to prosper in a local economy which supports low carbon ambitions and offers opportunities for all
• Communities are resilient and physically, digitally and socially connected

Key actions

• Support and promote business growth, business and place innovation and investment in both our urban and rural areas
• Invest in innovative green power and smart technology solutions to reduce reliance on electricity from the national grid and create opportunities for business growth and regeneration
• Promote what our city and towns have to offer to businesses, investors and tourists by capitalising on built and natural heritage and assets such as the new Perth Museum and the benefits to the whole area of Perth's status as UNESCO City of Craft and Folk Art
• Support individuals into work and to progress into better paid work, encouraging businesses to access initiatives to create new opportunities for those furthest from the employment market and those currently in low wage jobs

View the performance measures and targets (PDF) [48KB] for these actions.

Context

Perth and Kinross has a diverse, broad-based economy. However, the area's acknowledged challenge is the proportion of jobs in tourism, agriculture and hospitality - sectors which were significantly disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

In view of the very challenging UK economic picture at the time of finalising this document our ambitions for the local economy must be both realistic and achievable. Our initial focus is therefore on working in partnership with others to ensure that our local economy is ready and able to seize opportunities that arise through national economic recovery, and to attract new jobs to the area in sectors such as green power and smart technology solutions.

During the pandemic we agreed a joint approach to economic recovery with local business leaders, and the Council's commitment to this work will contribute to our actions under this priority.

Over the lifetime of this Corporate Plan, our long-term investment in developing our cultural offer will come to fruition with the opening of the new museum, and new home to the Stone of Destiny, within the former Perth City Hall in 2024. In late 2021, Perth also became a UNESCO Creative City as a City of Crafts and Folk Art, creating another powerful asset with which to develop and promote the area as a cultural tourism destination.

Community wealth building

In our contribution to developing the local economy we will take the principles of community wealth building into account. This is an approach to local economic development which re-directs wealth back into the local area. As a council we will seek to, wherever possible, positively use our commissioning and purchasing power and our facilities and land assets so that local businesses and communities benefit from financial and social gain. This is a new way of working and we will continue to develop our approach and learn from the experiences of our Tay Cities Region Deal partners and public sector groups across Scotland who are introducing this way of working.