Informing our future

Welcome to Informing our Future 2008. Prepared by the HEP Research & Intelligence Task Group and commissioned from the University of Portsmouth, it is an independent assessment of Hampshire’s economy, its vibrancy as well as the current opportunities and challenges it faces.

This, the eight edition of Informing our Future, specifically examines Hampshire’s progress towards implementing the South East’s Regional Economic Strategy (RES). This is particularly pertinent given the recent economic slowdown and the impact of the credit crunch, neither of which was foreseen in the aspirational RES targets set in 2006.

We have ensured that the “Business Voice” has been strongly represented in Informing our Future 2008. We held the very successful “HEP Business Question Time” event, met with business sector leaders and convened a consultative Business Breakfast all with the objective of understanding business’ requirements relative to the RES Implementation Plan. One particular area of focus has been Global Competitiveness, where we have tested the hypothesis, “Is Hampshire effectively competing in the Global Marketplace?” This has involved field research in a developing market and identified both opportunities and challenges for Hampshire’s economy. In addition, we have added a business summary to the executive summary which summarises the key findings of the report and how these relate to Hampshire businesses.

A new aspect of Informing our Future 2008 is the inclusion of 13 Business Case Studies, all directly linked to the RES themes of Global Competitiveness, Smart Growth and Sustainable Prosperity. They showcase how Hampshire business is capitalising on various market gaps and introducing new and innovative ways of working thus bringing a new, add-value dimension to Informing our Future.

Due to the very favourable response to the district economic fact sheets we introduced last year, we have again included a Hampshire and district suite of reports. We have restructured these fact sheets to be aligned with the RES and provide for meaningful comparisons at the sub-regional level.

We hope you find Informing our Future both informative and an invaluable reference tool.

Caroline Williams
Chairman, Hampshire Economic Partnership

'informing our future' 2008 Full Report

Section 1 - Is Hampshire on Target?

Section 2 - Hampshire in the Global Economic Context

Section 3 - Is Hampshire Competing Effectively in the Global Marketplace?

Section 4 - Is Hampshire's Business Growth Smart?

Section 5 - Is Hampshire's Local Prosperity Sustainable?

Section 6 - The Hampshire Health Check

'informing our future' 2008 Executive Summary (Pages 1 - 4)

'informing our future' 2008 Executive Summary (Pages 5 - 7)

2009 Data Sheets

Following the success of the Hampshire Fact Sheets which were released in Spring 2008 along with informing our future 2007, HEP has produced a new set of data sheets in February 2009 to accompany informing our future 2008. These are also utilised in the new edition of informing our future.

The data sheets and the "Explanation of Data" summary are available for download below. You will need Acrobat reader to access the files below - for a free download of the latest Acrobat Reader please click here.

Explanation of Data

Hampshire Complete 2009

Hampshire - Including Portsmouth and Southampton