Kevin Harris is stepping down from his role as chairman of the Leicester and Leicestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, after four years in post.
A well-known face on the regional business scene, he has chaired the LLEP since 2018, having spent the prior four years as its deputy chair. Mr Harris, who is Leicester managing partner and regional accounting head for accountants RSM UK, said he will stand down when his current term ends this month.
Over the past decade the LLEP has played key parts in establishing new enterprise zones in the city and county, supported the Friars Mill office development in Leicester and helped thousands of small businesses through the Business Gateway.
Mr Harris’s time as chair coincided with delivery of the £100 million Space Park Leicester and work on the SportPark Pavilion 4 on the LUSEP campus in Loughborough. He also led the LLEP’s role in the successful East Midlands Freeport bid, and its response to both the pandemic and the Government’s Levelling Up White Paper.
He is a board member of the Midlands Engine and the East Midlands Chamber of Commerce and was last year named non-executive of the year at the LeicestershireLive Business Executive of the Year awards.
LLEP vice-chairman Andy Reed OBE will serve as interim chairman – subject to board agreement next week – until the AGM, when a permanent replacement will be made.
Mr Harris will remain on the LLEP board until the AGM, probably in October, to ensure a smooth transition.
Paying tribute to the work completed by colleagues at the LLEP he said he had been glad to see initiatives included in the county’s Local Industrial Strategy, and the LLEP’s subsequent Economic Growth Strategy, pay off.
He said: “There’s undoubtedly lots of change still to come. We recognise that and remain bold in shaping our response to the future.
“But I’m proud that the LLEP is well set up to meet the challenges and the end of this current term therefore feels a natural point to hand the baton on to a new chair.”
Former Loughborough MP Andy Reed said: “Kevin has chaired the LLEP with huge commitment and focus during a challenging period of continual change.
“He is right to draw attention to the ongoing importance of the Industrial Strategy he helped to drive forward.
“The national conversation continues around the role of LEPs, in relation to County Deals and the wider Levelling Up agenda, and I look forward to working with local partners on that through to October.
“In the meantime, it’s an appropriate time to reiterate our appreciation of Kevin and the LLEP team for all they have done already.”
Mr Harris has 27 years’ experience as an auditor and adviser to local SMEs and has been a partner in the Leicester area for more than 20 years.
He founded and managed PKF Cooper Parry’s Leicester office and helped with its move to Castle Donington, before moving to RSM's Grove Park office.
The LLEP has invested more than £500 million of external funding in Leicester and Leicestershire since incorporation in 2011, which it estimates it has created more than 6,900 jobs.
In December, Mr Harris led the launch of its Economic Growth Strategy – a key strategic document which focuses on innovation, productivity, sustainability and inclusivity in the years through to 2030.
