Hyndburn is one of the most deprived local authorities in England, with Accrington suffering from long-term underinvestment and weak market demand. Following an unsuccessful Towns Fund bid, the Council sought to reset its approach and build a credible strategy for regeneration and funding.

• Worked in partnership with Bradshaw Advisory to develop a long-term regeneration strategy
• Supported formation of a Partnership Board to build consensus and local leadership
• Developed the town’s first Town Centre Investment Plan (10-year strategy)
• Combined data analysis, polling and stakeholder engagement to build a robust evidence base
• Defined a clear strategic narrative and investment priorities for the town centre
• Supported development of funding bids and business cases aligned to the strategy

Established a clear, evidence-based strategy for regeneration, unlocking over £65m in funding and positioning Accrington for long-term renewal and investment.

The Council sought to unlock the potential of the Port as a strategic asset supporting offshore wind, logistics and regional economic growth.

• Developed a Strategic Outline Business Case
• Produced a clear, investor-facing prospectus
• Undertook economic, market and sector analysis
• Engaged stakeholders including local partners and MPs
• Positioned the Port within regional and national policy priorities

Established a credible investment proposition to support future funding, stakeholder engagement and private sector investment.

The Carriage Works is a major brownfield site in Swindon town centre with significant heritage value but long-standing delivery challenges. The Council sought to bring the site forward as a catalyst for wider regeneration, requiring a clear strategy, viable delivery model and strong institutional partnerships.

• Defined the strategic vision for the site as a hub for culture, high-tech activity and education
• Developed the economic and financial case and supported funding bids
• Advised on delivery options and investment strategy
• Played an instrumental role in securing a land swap agreement with Network Rail
• Played a central role in bringing major university partners into the town

Helped unlock regeneration, secure investment and establish a long-term vision for the town centre.

The Combined Authority sought to accelerate housing delivery across a large and diverse geography, requiring a clear understanding of the development pipeline, barriers to delivery and priorities for public sector intervention.

• Built a comprehensive pipeline of ~300 sites
• Identified a shortlist of 49 strategic sites delivering over 28,000 homes
• Assessed barriers including viability, infrastructure and delivery constraints
• Developed a structured prioritisation and triage framework
• Designed a Housing Investment Model to guide funding decisions

Established a shared, evidence-based pipeline and investment framework, forming the basis for a Strategic Place Partnership with Homes England.

The Combined Authority and Homes England established a Strategic Place Partnership to support a step change in housing delivery, requiring a clear pipeline, delivery framework and prioritisation of sites capable of supporting growth ambitions.

• Developed a comprehensive housing pipeline of ~200 sites
• Designed a triage framework categorising sites as Good, Possible or Unlikely
• Identified priority sites delivering over 100,000 homes
• Developed a five-year Business Plan and Delivery Plan
• Assessed barriers including viability, infrastructure and market absorption
• Identified intervention options including tenure diversification and delivery models

Established a clear framework for coordinated housing delivery and public sector intervention, supporting economic growth ambitions.

WMCA recognised the potential for heritage assets to support regeneration, housing delivery and economic growth, but lacked a consistent evidence base and strategic framework to guide investment and decision-making.

• Developed a comprehensive evidence base covering over 4,700 heritage assets
• Assessed economic, social and wellbeing impacts using Culture & Heritage Capital approaches
• Conducted 20+ structured stakeholder consultations
• Identified barriers including viability, funding and capacity constraints
• Developed a strategic framework, logic model and recommendations

Established a clear framework for integrating heritage into regional regeneration and investment strategies. Formally adopted by WMCA, November 2024.

Vodafone sought to quantify the economic impact of 5G deployment in the UK, both to support investment decisions and to inform engagement with Government on the case for accelerating rollout through planning and regulatory reform.

• Developed a national economic model to estimate the impact of 5G on productivity, GVA and employment
• Undertook sector-level analysis to assess how 5G-enabled technologies drive growth across the economy
• Modelled the economic impact of Vodafone’s £11bn investment programme, including direct, indirect and supply chain effects
• Quantified employment and GVA impacts using input-output modelling and ONS data
• Assessed the economic benefits of accelerating deployment through planning reform
• Developed a structured evidence base linking rollout speed to earlier realisation of economic benefits

Demonstrated that 5G could deliver up to £70bn in additional GVA to the UK economy by 2035, driven primarily by productivity gains across multiple sectors. The work also showed that planning reform could unlock billions of pounds in additional economic value by accelerating deployment, providing a clear, evidence-based case for policy change.

HyNet North West is a major UK industrial decarbonisation programme focused on hydrogen production and carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS). The project formed part of the Government’s Cluster Sequencing process, requiring robust evidence on economic impact, alongside a clear understanding of workforce and skills requirements to support delivery.

• Developed a detailed economic impact assessment covering GVA, employment and supply chain effects
• Modelled direct, indirect and induced impacts across the regional and national economy
• Assessed the scale and distribution of economic benefits across the North West
• Analysed workforce requirements across key phases of delivery, including construction and operations
• Reviewed further and higher education provision to assess alignment with emerging skills needs
• Identified potential skills gaps and implications for training and workforce development
• Provided analytical input under tight timescales to support the Cluster Sequencing submission

The analysis supported HyNet’s successful bid through the BEIS Cluster Sequencing Phase 1 process, helping to secure its position as one of the UK’s leading industrial decarbonisation clusters. The work demonstrated the scale of potential job creation and economic benefits, while also highlighting the importance of aligning skills provision with emerging demand to enable delivery.

South Yorkshire has a rich cultural and heritage offer but has historically attracted lower levels of investment than comparable city regions. The study was commissioned to establish a robust evidence base on the sector’s economic and social contribution, and to inform future investment, strategy and recovery planning.

• Quantified the direct economic contribution of the sector, including GVA and employment
• Assessed indirect and induced impacts, estimating wider economic effects across the regional economy
• Analysed a broad range of social and wellbeing impacts, including health, education, community and place-based outcomes
• Designed and delivered a region-wide survey of organisations and freelancers to capture sector characteristics, funding access and challenges
• Undertook stakeholder engagement with local authorities, cultural institutions and national bodies
• Benchmarked South Yorkshire against other city regions and funding levels
• Identified investment priorities and funding gaps
• Developed a strategic framework to support coordinated investment and delivery

Provided the first robust, evidence-based baseline for the CAH sector in South Yorkshire, directly informing development of a city-region-wide strategy adopted by SYMCA. The work supported the case for additional investment, contributed to the creation of a senior leadership role within the Combined Authority, and helped raise the profile of the sector with national funders and government.

The Covid-19 pandemic had a profound and immediate impact on the CAH sector, with venues closed, events cancelled and income streams disrupted. This study, commissioned as part of a UKRI/AHRC-funded research programme led by the University of Sheffield, provided a detailed regional assessment of these impacts and how they compared to other city regions.

• Assessed the direct economic impact of Covid-19 on the CAH sector, including GVA and employment effects
• Modelled regional impacts using national data, weighted to reflect South Yorkshire’s sector composition
• Benchmarked impacts across seven comparator city regions
• Analysed sub-sector exposure, identifying areas most affected including performing arts, museums and venues
• Incorporated survey evidence from organisations and freelancers to capture real-time impacts
• Examined the role and distribution of government support measures, including the Cultural Recovery Fund
• Assessed wider social impacts, including effects on wellbeing, participation and volunteering
• Developed targeted recommendations to support recovery and longer-term resilience

Provided a robust and timely evidence base showing that South Yorkshire’s CAH sector was more severely impacted than many comparator regions. The report was launched by the University of Sheffield, picked up by the BBC, and has since been widely referenced in regional strategies and academic research. Findings were used by regional partners to inform recovery planning, support lobbying for sector funding, and shape investment decisions.

The Motorcycle Industry Association wanted robust, geographically specific evidence on the scale and distribution of the industry’s economic contribution. The work was designed to support engagement with policymakers by showing not only the national importance of the sector, but also its local footprint across parliamentary constituencies.

• Defined the motorcycle industry across manufacturing, retail, maintenance, repair, PLVs and associated R&D activity
• Analysed direct employment using ONS Business Register and Employment Survey data at low geographic level
• Mapped jobs to the new 2024 parliamentary constituency boundaries
• Estimated indirect supply chain effects using ONS input-output multipliers
• Quantified direct and indirect GVA supported by the industry
• Identified the constituencies with the highest concentrations of motorcycle industry activity
• Combined official data with sector intelligence from MCIA to capture activity not visible through standard classifications alone

Provided MCIA with a robust evidence base demonstrating the scale and distribution of the industry’s economic contribution. By translating national impact into constituency-level evidence, the work helped strengthen the case for the sector’s importance to manufacturing, retail and innovation across England and Wales.

Homes England commissioned an evaluation of the Home Building Fund – Infrastructure Loans programme, a major recoverable finance scheme designed to unlock housing delivery through upfront infrastructure investment. The evaluation focused on how the fund operated in practice, the effectiveness of its delivery model, and what lessons could inform successor programmes.

• Delivered a theory-informed process evaluation of the fund’s design and operation
• Reviewed programme documentation, monitoring data and internal processes across the full delivery lifecycle
• Undertook in-depth interviews with Homes England staff and loan recipients to understand delivery experience in practice
• Assessed governance, approvals, contracting and portfolio management arrangements
• Examined how changing market conditions, including rising interest rates and construction costs, affected demand and scheme viability
• Identified strengths, bottlenecks and risks in the fund’s delivery model
• Developed practical recommendations to improve future infrastructure finance programmes, including the National Housing Delivery Fund

Provided Homes England with a clear, evidence-based assessment of how the programme operated in practice and where improvements could be made. The evaluation generated practical lessons on governance, market engagement, risk appetite and monitoring, helping to inform the design of future housing infrastructure funds.

The LAAC programme was a £450 million Homes England initiative designed to accelerate housing delivery on public land by supporting local authorities to bring forward sites. The evaluation was commissioned to assess programme performance, understand delivery challenges and identify lessons to inform future housing programmes.

• Worked in partnership with Hatch to deliver a programme-level evaluation
• Analysed monitoring data to assess performance against financial expenditure and housing delivery targets
• Developed a Theory of Change and logic model to map programme inputs, outputs, outcomes and intended impacts
• Designed an impact and evaluation framework covering economic, social and environmental outcomes
• Reviewed and provided quality assurance on the value for money assessment
• Identified delivery challenges, success factors and risks across participating local authorities
• Developed practical recommendations and lessons learned to inform future programme design and delivery

Provided Homes England with a structured and evidence-based assessment of programme performance and delivery. The evaluation identified key lessons on programme design, local authority capacity and delivery risks, helping to inform the development of future housing and regeneration programmes and improve the effectiveness of public sector intervention.

Following a £22 million regeneration, The Piece Hall was repositioned as a major cultural and economic asset for Halifax and Calderdale. CWE was commissioned to provide an independent evaluation of the scheme’s impacts, including economic performance, wider regeneration effects and contribution to place and reputation.

• Designed and delivered a multi-dimensional evaluation framework aligned with HM Treasury Green Book principles
• Assessed direct, indirect and induced economic impacts using GVA modelling and additionality assumptions
• Applied counterfactual approaches, including difference-in-differences, to isolate regeneration effects
• Evaluated wider regeneration impacts including town centre footfall and spillover effects on surrounding assets
• Quantified social value using recognised approaches such as the travel cost method
• Assessed reputational impacts through survey evidence and digital analytics
• Triangulated evidence from data analysis, stakeholder interviews and market indicators to ensure robust findings

The evaluation demonstrated that the regeneration has delivered substantial economic and wider benefits, including significant uplift in visitor numbers, local economic activity and town centre performance. Every £1 of operational spend was estimated to generate more than £5 in the local economy, with additional social value and reputational benefits reinforcing the case for heritage-led regeneration as a catalyst for growth.

Historic England needed a robust framework to assess and evidence its Strategic Added Value ahead of the 2027–28 Spending Review. The challenge was to evaluate value created not just through direct programmes, but through statutory advice, convening power, grant leverage, research, sector leadership and long-term influence across the heritage system.

• Defined Strategic Added Value in the specific context of Historic England’s statutory and system-wide role
• Reviewed existing evaluations, KPIs, datasets and strategic evidence to assess readiness for a full appraisal
• Identified and prioritised evidence gaps, distinguishing between areas already well evidenced and those requiring further development
• Developed a set of impact pathways and logic models showing how Historic England influences decisions, behaviours and long-term outcomes
• Undertook targeted stakeholder engagement with internal and external partners to test the framework and surface less visible areas of impact
• Set out practical, costed options for a future SAV appraisal aligned with Green Book and Magenta Book expectations

Provided Historic England with a clear, defensible and Treasury-ready framework for evidencing its wider strategic contribution. The work established a practical basis for future evaluation, helping the organisation articulate how it creates value through influence, leverage, coordination and stewardship across the historic environment.

Retail plays a critical role in local economies, particularly in areas facing economic disadvantage, yet its contribution is often underrepresented in policy. This study was commissioned to evaluate how the sector supports levelling up outcomes, and how policy and structural factors influence its effectiveness.

• Developed a bespoke evaluation framework (Levelling Up Index) benchmarking all parliamentary constituencies across employment, health, deprivation and vacancy indicators
• Undertook contribution analysis to assess the role of retail in supporting jobs, incomes and high street vitality
• Combined national datasets with proprietary industry data to strengthen the evidence base
• Assessed the extent to which outcomes could be linked to sector activity versus wider structural factors
• Evaluated the impact of policy constraints including business rates, skills and planning on sector performance
• Identified systemic barriers and their distributional impacts across regions
• Developed evidence-based recommendations to improve policy effectiveness and unlock investment

Provided a robust, evaluation-led evidence base on the role of retail in supporting levelling up, informing national policy discussions and highlighting how targeted reforms could unlock economic activity and job creation in disadvantaged areas. The work demonstrates CWE’s ability to apply evaluation principles beyond individual programmes, assessing the performance of sectors and policy environments in delivering strategic outcomes.