What we found from a 10-year growth, skills and regeneration programme study

Wavehill was commissioned to evaluate the Tech Valleys programme, a £100m investment designed to support economic change in Blaenau Gwent and neighbouring Valleys over 10 years. The work focused on assessing programme delivery and identifying impacts across three interconnected skills, infrastructure and business growth strands.

A contribution analysis approach was used by the evaluation to help assess the impacts, drawing on a series of hypotheses for each strand. The evaluation combined insight from a wide range of evidence sources across the three strands, from stakeholder insight and primary research, to reviewing project level reports and secondary data analysis, to understand how activity had translated into observable outcomes. However, the evaluation was inhibited by the quality of the programme monitoring data and the inability to engage with activities undertaken early in the programme which restricted the ability to track outcomes and impacts.

The key findings from the evaluation were therefore that while there had been some changes in secondary indicators in Blaenau Gwent and neighbouring valleys, it was difficult even with combined evidence sources to attribute this to the programme. Recommendations were for future programmes of this scale to include comprehensive monitoring and evaluation from the start, to ensure systems were in place to enable more effective assessments of impact.

The final report is being used by Welsh Government to inform remaining programme delivery and future programme design, as well as supporting with place setting policy.