Read: Basildon Council signs up to Levelling Up Goals

Basildon Council has announced a new partnership with former Education Secretary Rt Hon Justine Greening in a bid to level up and spread opportunity. 

The partnership will see Basildon Council develop a Levelling Up Impact Report to benchmark 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 and health and well-being. 

The 14 Levelling up Goals provide a universal benchmark for organisations to measure their impact against. The goals are being adopted by a range of organisations, including a number within Essex - East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Essex County Council and the University of Essex. 

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

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: “Basildon Council is already doing great work in this area and through this partnership they are proving themselves to be levelling up trailblazers. 

“I’m delighted that with the leadership of Councillor Andrew Baggott, Basildon are showing that levelling up is a nationwide challenge - not just a challenge for the north to address. 

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

Paul Burkinshaw, Director of Corporate Strategy & Governance and Monitoring Officer at Basildon said “Basildon is one of the most inequal parts of the country. We are the economic powerhouse of Essex and are home to some of the largest businesses in the country. However, at the same time we have very large areas of deprivation.

“Joining the Levelling Up Councils Coalition demonstrates our commitment to addressing this and will support our work to drive out inequality across the borough. We look forward to working with other public sector bodies as well as partners in the private sector to reach the levelling up goals.”