IfG DevoLab #5: How can mayors and local leaders create a shared vision for regional growth?
2 July 2026, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online / Millennium Gallery, Arundel room, 48 Arundel Gate, Sheffield S1 2PP
Think tank: Institute for Government
This event hosted by UK think tank the Institute for Government discusses how mayors and local leaders can build and sustain a shared vision for growth across their regions.
The IfG DevoLab is dedicated to exploring the innovations enabled by devolution, learning from the results, and sharing the lessons so that places can take better decisions about how to use devolved powers and budgets.
Join us on 2 July in Sheffield (or online) for the fifth IfG DevoLab event, where three speakers will set out how mayors and local leaders can build and sustain a shared vision for growth across their regions.
The three case studies being presented at IfG DevoLab #5 are:
- ‘Developing a shared vision for growth in South Yorkshire’, by Kate Josephs CB – Chief Executive of Sheffield City Council
- ‘Corridors of Growth in a Polycentric City Region’, by Tony Reeves – Chief Executive of Wakefield Council
- ‘Delivering an inclusive growth strategy in the East Midlands’, by Damien Dacey – Executive Director of Strategy and Inclusive Growth at the East Midlands County Combined Authority
The IfG DevoLab is dedicated to exploring the innovations enabled by devolution, learning from the results, and sharing the lessons so that places can take better decisions about how to use devolved powers and budgets.
The three speakers will be joined by Pete Gladwell – Group Managing Director, Public Investment at L&G, for a broader discussion on how mayors can work effectively with partners across their region, build consensus around shared priorities, and sustain ambition as political contexts shift.
This event will be chaired by Dr Hannah White – Director and CEO of the Institute for Government.
Insights from this discussion will inform a published policy briefing containing the three case studies and a synthesis of key lessons.