ICOSS Centres

Centre for Regional Economic and Enterprise Development

• To act as a co-ordinating body for the research undertaken by the University on local and regional economic development, enterprise development and entrepreneurship.
• To act as a catalyst and expertise resource for furthering the work of the University as whole in these areas.
• To give the University strengthened visibility in outreach activities related to enterprise, entrepreneurship as well as local and regional economic development.
• To act as a focal point for consultancy, knowledge transfer and research commissions for projects in these areas.

Selected recent research

• Evaluation of feasibility of establishing a European body for tackling undeclared work (European Commission)
• Evaluation of ‘best-practice’ policy measures to tackle undeclared work in EU nations (funded by European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions);
• Analysis of ghosts, moonlighters and unregistered businesses in the informal economy (National Audit Office);
• Evaluation of demand for commercialisation of domestic services (Sheffield City Council);
• Co-organisers of seminar series on analysing local economic development in a time of peak oil and energy problems (ESRC);
• Writing a specification for the delivery of a formalisation service to off-the-books enterprises (Wandsworth Borough Council);
• Evaluating the size and nature of the informal economy in West Cornwall, 2006 (Cambourne, Penrith & Redruth Regeneration Ltd);
• Providing advice on Informal Economic Activities and Deprived Neighbourhoods (Department of Communities and Local Government);
• Identifying Data Sources on Entrepreneurship and the Informal Economy (Office of National Statistics);
• Producing report on Small Businesses in the Informal Economy: making the transition to the formal economy (Small Business Council)

Find out more