The South West Observatory (SWO) was a regional resource for the South West of England, originally established by the former South West Regional Development Agency, Government Office for the South West, and the

South West Regional Assembly The South West Regional Assembly (SWRA) was the regional chamber for South West England, established in 1999. It was wound up in December 2008. Its functions were taken on by the South West Strategic Leaders' Board, the executive arm of the newl ...

(now South West Councils) as a partnership for use by policy-makers to aid and improve evidence-based decision-making. It operated from 2002 - 2013. SWO was one of seven Regional Observatories operating in the English regions. Not all Observatories operated in the same way and are at different stages of development.

Structure and funding

The SWO was a network of analysts working together at the regional and sub-regional levels to provide timely and accurate information about the region. The SWO network comprised "Thematic Modules" which covered various cross-cutting policy themes and "Local Intelligence Networks" (LINs) which focused on specific geographies. The SWO's structure differed from that of other Regional Observatories. At the centre of the South West Observatory is a Core Unit which coordinates and facilitates network activity. This is based in

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

. The SWO works with a broad range of regional and national partners on many issues. *Modules - There were six modules working within the SWO. They were Economy, Environment, Housing & Planning, Public Health, Skills and Learning (in association with the Marchmont Observatory), and Culture and Society. The structure of the individual modules differed, as did their sources of funding. *Local Intelligence Networks - There were nine Local Intelligence Networks (LINs) involved in SWO activities. These were based within the local authorities covering

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

Torbay Torbay is a unitary authority with a borough status in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It is governed by Torbay Council, based in the town of Torquay, and also includes the towns of Paignton and Brixham. The borough consists of ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

, West of England (

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and North East

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

and

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

. The SWO also worked within a wider network of regional agencies, government departments and academics. This included the

Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; ) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible fo ...

and the then (ONS) Regional Presence.

Key publications

Every year the SWO produced a report entitled ''The State of the South West''. Published online annually and as a hard copy every three years, this report detailed the facts and figures behind life in the South West. The last edition was published in March 2012.

References

External links

South West Observatory Website
{{Authority control South West England