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Regional Implementation Plans
- What are the Regional Implementation Plans?
- What will the Regional Implementation Plans be used for?
- Will the Regional Implementation Plans be submitted to the European Commission?
- What kind of information will the Regional Implementation Plans contain?
- Is there a standard format for the Plans?
- When do the Regional Implementation Plans need to be completed?
- How will partners and stakeholders be involved in the development of Regional Implementation Plans?
1. What are the Regional Implementation Plans?
- The Regional Implementation Plans (RIPs) set out how the next Rural Development Programme (RDP) for England will be used in each of the regions.
- In line with the Rural Strategy 2004, a guiding principle for the
next Programme is that its design and delivery should have the
flexibility to respond to regional and local needs and priorities. In
line with this principle, regions have:
- within the framework of priorities set out in the national
strategy for England, decide on the priorities for the next Programme
in the region (taking full account of existing regional strategies
and priorities, as set out in Regional Rural Delivery Frameworks,
Regional Economic Strategies and elsewhere, and taking
account of discussions with stakeholders).
- decided which measures in the Rural Development Regulation are best suited to delivering the objectives and outcomes of regional priorities.
- decide how delivery mechanisms for the next Programme will work in practice in the region.
- within the framework of priorities set out in the national
strategy for England, decide on the priorities for the next Programme
in the region (taking full account of existing regional strategies
and priorities, as set out in Regional Rural Delivery Frameworks,
Regional Economic Strategies and elsewhere, and taking
account of discussions with stakeholders).
2. What will the Regional Implementation Plans be used for?
- The Regional Implementation Plans have two roles:
- to inform the content of the Rural Development Programme for England document; and
- to set out how the Rural Development Programme for England will be used in the region.
3. Will the Regional Implementation Plans be submitted to the European Commission?
- No, we will not be submitting the Regional Implementation Plans to the European Commission.
- We have produced a coherent national programme, which provides the right level of detail to meet European Commission requirements (as set out in the Regulations) but also gives an appropriate level of regional flexibility.
- However, information from the Regional Implementation Plans has been used to inform the Programme Document. For example, the Programme Document set out which Rural Development Regulation measures we plan to use, and we have built this information up from the Regional Plans. However, not all the information the Plans contain needed to be included in the England Programme Document.
4. What kind of information do the Regional Implementation Plans contain?
- Regional Implementation Plans broadly cover the
following:
- Evidence about the needs of rural areas
- Information about available funding sources (other than the RDP).
- The priorities for the next Programme in the region
- How the region will manage RDP funding and other EU funding sources (the Structural Funds and European Fisheries Fund) to make sure activity is complementary, not duplicatory
- Information about available funding sources (other than the RDP).
- The regional delivery strategy, including:
- which Rural Development Regulation measures will be used and the balance between them
- how the Leader approach will be used
- the process for achieving integrated delivery across the Programme; and
- Regional Communication Plans
5. Is there a standard format for the Plans?
- No. Regions can choose to develop their plans in the format they find most useful for themselves and their regional partners and stakeholders.
6. When do the Regional Implementation Plans need to be completed?
- First drafts of the Regional Implementation Plans were sent to Defra at the end of July 2006. Further versions were sent forward in October and December 2006 and in March and May 2007.
- Information contained in the Regional Implementation Plans was used to inform the England Programme document.
- Now the Programme has been approved Regional Implementation Plans can be finalised.
7. How will partners and stakeholders be involved in the development of Regional Implementation Plans?
- There is no requirement for a formal 12 week consultation on the Regional Implementation Plans.
- The plans have been developed through an iterative process. An ongoing discussion with partners and stakeholders is therefore more useful than a one-off written exercise.
- Natural England, the Forestry Commission and the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) have worked with a wide range of stakeholders to develop the plans, with the Government Offices in the Regions helping to facilitate the process.
Page last modified:
28 August, 2009
Page published: 21 July, 2005