Neighbourhood Renewal (Hansard, 14 June 2000)

§ Ms Armstrong

My Department commissions in-depth evaluations to assess the effectiveness of initiatives aimed at neighbourhood renewal and urban regeneration. These evaluations are concerned with effectiveness both in terms of process issues, such as delivery structures, and in terms of their impact on deprivation and exclusion. DETR is currently responsible for the following evaluations of cross-departmental initiatives:

New Deal for Communities The monitoring and evaluation arrangements for the NDC programme comprise ongoing project and scheme monitoring, which is reported to Government at the mid-year and annual progress reviews, and individual project evaluation, and scheme evaluation at the three, six and end year stages of the schemes. The Government will also be undertaking a national evaluation of the programme, which will focus on the operation and achievements of the programme in its first three years.

Single Regeneration Budget There is an on-going evaluation of rounds 1 and 2 of SRB and plans to commission an evaluation of more recent SRB activity this year. In addition, we are supporting the evaluation of the Local Government Association's New Commitment to Regeneration and have commissioned an action research study to develop more co-ordinated working between regeneration initiatives at the local level. Emerging evidence from these studies has already been used to support wider reviews of policy such as the Spending Review 2000 cross-cutting review of Government Intervention in Deprived Areas, the Social Exclusion Unit's National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal and the work of the Performance and Innovation Unit.