Research and analysis

North of Tyne: UKSPF summary evaluation plan

Published 4 April 2025

Applies to England

Summary of the local place

The North of Tyne is located in Northeast England, with a geography characterised by a mix of urban, rural and coastal landscapes. It is the area covered by the Local Authorities (LAs) of Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland, spanning Newcastle-Upon-Tyne to the south, the North Sea to the East, the Scottish border to the North, and the Cumbrian border to the West. At the point of applying for UKSPF funding, the three LAs formed the North of Tyne Combined Authority (NTCA). However, in 2024, NTCA dissolved, and a new CA – the North East Combined Authority (NECA) – was established, which united the North East LAs of County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland. In this evaluation plan, ‘North of Tyne’ is used to refer to the three LAs that will be covered by the evaluation.

Map of North of Tyne

The North of Tyne area has received £47.1 million from UKSPF (allocated across the three investment priorities as follows: Communities and Place (£15.8 million), Supporting Local Businesses (£19.1 million) and People and Skills (£12.1 million).

The area also receives £4.1 million from Multiply, and £3 million from Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF), which is being used for the Northumberland Small Business Service, and the Rural Asset Multiplier Pilots. Other match funding includes the North of Tyne Combined Authority (NTCA) Investment Fund, the Towns Fund, local authority contributions and private sector contributions.

Unit of analysis

The case study will focus on a sample of interventions delivered throughout North of Tyne, and across all three investment priorities. These interventions cover the following themes of interest: increasing community pride in local communities; creating sustainable models of funding for enterprise support and growth; and supporting jobs for the green transition.

There is significant local evaluation activity in the North of Tyne (including a portfolio-level evaluation), so taking a thematic approach will avoid duplication and add value to existing evaluation efforts.

Methodological approach

Process evaluation

To address MHCLG and the North of Tyne’s learning needs, the case study will include a process evaluation. The purpose of the process evaluation is to answer questions on the relevance, efficiency and effectiveness of fund design and interventions, and the efficiency and effectiveness of processes used to manage and deliver the UKSPF interventions. Research activities will include:

• a context review, to understand the evolving local context at the interim and final stages of the evaluation
• analysis of local monitoring information, to explore progress in project implementation, delivery and outputs
• interviews with key strategic, operational and front-line stakeholders, as well as beneficiaries of the selected interventions

Impact evaluation

Following a review of the feasibility of implementing a quasi-experimental design (QED), it will be feasible to employ a Difference-in-Differences methodology to assess the impact of the High Streets and Towns Innovation Programme. This is due to activity being targeted at specific towns and/or roads within localities, and there are comparator sites available within the case study area. However, these interventions are being independently evaluated and we require further information on the nature of the local evaluation activity to inform whether a QED will be implementable for our case study.

For interventions and outcomes where a QED is not feasible, we will employ a theory-based approach, using contribution analysis to assess what changes have taken place in the North of Tyne, whether UKSPF has contributed to outcomes achievement, how and why. The research team will develop a contribution or performance story for outcomes expected to be achieved in the North of Tyne, which will link to the Theory of Change (ToC). The analysis will include:

• Management information will provide data on the progress towards, and achievement of, outcomes as outlined in the ToC.
• Primary research with stakeholders will capture data on outcomes from the perspective of stakeholders and critically allow exploration of why outcomes have or have not been achieved.
• Primary research with beneficiaries will allow more in-depth exploration of the outcomes achieved.
• Secondary data sources: we will use the Your Community, Your Say survey to assess perceptions of places in receipt of UKSPF funding (and those not funded), Annual Population Data Survey for jobs information, and VisitBritain data to understand visitor numbers and spend in the region.

Economic evaluation

The evaluation in the North of Tyne will include a value for money assessment following the National Audit Office 4E’s approach, assessing the economy, efficiency, effectiveness and equity of the UKSPF interventions.

Data to support the evaluation

Primary data collection

Qualitative research will be undertaken with stakeholders (including strategic, operational and frontline stakeholders) and beneficiaries (citizens, local business leaders, individuals accessing support). This data collection will capture evidence on the overall delivery and explore in depth the operation and outcomes of interventions and the investment as a whole. To engage the different stakeholder groups, we will employ a range of qualitative approaches, allowing us to offer flexibility in the ways stakeholders participate. This will include individual, paired or small group interviews, focus groups, and observations. We will not undertake surveys as the local evaluation is undertaking several surveys across multiple stakeholder groups.

Secondary data sources

Thematic focus	Data sources
Community pride in local communities	■ Local data collected on buildings and premises developed and rehabilitated, tourism data and local footfall ■ Social media sentiment analysis (collected by the evaluator) ■ Visitor stay and spend data (e.g. from VisitBritain data) ■ Community Life survey - key metrics: satisfaction with the local area, whether the area is improving or getting worse, feelings of belonging to the local area ■ Your Community, Your Say
Creating sustainable models of funding for supporting business growth	■ Local data collected by North of Tyne on enterprise birth rates and revenue over time
Supporting jobs for the green transition	■ Local data collected by North of Tyne on number of people accessing retraining opportunities and developing new skills