Read: Essex County Council signs up to Levelling Up Goals

Essex County Council has partnered with former Education Secretary Rt Hon Justine Greening in a bid to tackle inequality and help level up the region. 

The partnership will see Essex County Council develop a Levelling Up Impact Report to map its activity against a new set of goals. 

Launched earlier this year, the Levelling Up Goals provide a framework to focus efforts on driving equality of opportunity at each key life stage, from early years through to adulthood, alongside other barriers such as the digital divide. The 14 goals provide a universal benchmark for organisations to measure their impact against. 

The report will highlight best practice already being carried out in Essex and explore where a place-based approach to levelling up can tackle inequalities and improve life chances. 

Essex County Council joins a growing number of organisations that have already committed to measuring their impact against the goals including businesses, NHS Trusts and universities. These include East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) and the Make Happen project based at the University of Essex. 

A long-term campaigner on social mobility and levelling up both inside and now outside of Parliament, in 2018 Justine Greening co-founded the Social Mobility Pledge to bring organisations together to improve social mobility. The Levelling Up Goals are the first major piece of work launched by the most committed of these organisations.

Justine Greening said: “I am thrilled to be working with Cllr Louise McKinlay and the team at Essex County Council who are already doing great work in this area and are now leading the way in levelling up. Essex County Council is a great example of a purpose-led organisation committed to increasing opportunity and social mobility throughout the region. 

“Local authorities play a vital role in levelling up communities, as they support people of all ages from early years right through to adulthood. The impact of Covid-19 on those from lower socio-economic backgrounds over the last year has highlighted that now more than ever we need to focus our efforts to ensure that no one is left behind.”

Cllr Louise McKinlay, Deputy Leader of Essex County Council, said: “We are delighted to be working with the Rt Hon Justine Greening on our ambitious agenda to level up Essex. This is a fundamental part of ‘Everyone’s Essex,’ our plan for the County, because we are determined to improve the life chances of those who most need our help and support. Working with Justine and local partners, we are setting out a broad and bold programme of work that is designed not only to improve lives today but also to transform opportunities and raise aspiration for the long-term.”