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Launch of new Excellence in Place Leadership programme set to drive innovation

A new thought leadership programme is set to launch this week (Friday 20th September), seeking to drive innovation and create an environment for change across local places.

Developed by the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning & Transport (ADEPT), in partnership with Amey, the Excellence in Place Leadership programme will bring together forward-thinking ‘thought leaders’ from across ADEPT to form a professional network.

The aim is to create an enduring, self-sustaining and inclusive network of thought leaders and influencers, to examine key issues and opportunities affecting the place sector. The programme is aimed at director level officers, along with emerging place and thought leaders.

The group will attend quarterly sessions, which will cover different topics stemming from ADEPT’s strategic priorities – after each session, the group will create thought pieces, policy proposals, blogs and articles that can be shared with a wide range of audiences to challenge and stimulate conversation.

The new programme will facilitate networking and support new and existing relationships, not only between members, but also with the key speakers and organisations that will be invited to share their knowledge and expertise.

The first session will be held at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School on 20th September, with a focus on future business modelling, looking at the relationship between the commissioner and provider (private or public sector) of key place-based services.

Darryl Eyers, President of ADEPT, said: “Creating an environment for change demands fresh thinking and this is why we have launched the new Excellence in Place Leadership programme.

“Through its engagement with key issues, the group will be making a critical contribution to the future place shaping agenda. We want to create new strategies for transformation and development and build a parity of knowledge that can be widely shared, adding value to programmes such as ADEPT’s SMART Places Live Labs.”

The ADEPT Excellence in Place Leadership programme is sponsored by Amey, who pioneered this approach within the highways sector in 2018.

David Ogden, Business Director at Amey, said: “It’s a privilege to work with ADEPT on building this exciting new programme to catalyse fresh thinking and thought leadership with current and future leaders of local authorities. Given the known, and unknown, challenges we’re all facing, creating this professional network will enable attendees to learn and support each other through times of change to build greater excellence in place leadership.”

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