Prior to 1996, Programme management arrangements for Western Scotland had been housed in Strathclyde Regional Council.
Around 200 agencies are involved in Strathclyde European Partnership, including the Scottish Executive, local authorities, enterprise bodies, further and higher education, voluntary and community organisations and the environmental and equality agencies.
In each area of Scotland eligible for European Structural Funds, local partnerships like Strathclyde European Partnership consulted with the Scottish government to draw up plans on how to use European Structural Funds in their own area. These plans were then submitted by the Scottish government to the European Commission. Following negotiations with the European Commission, the plans were amended and published as Single Programme Documents which:
- laid out the aims and objectives of the funds in each region
- established priorities under which projects were to be funded
- indicated the types and amounts of financial support which were available.
SEP Ltd was established as a company limited by guarantee in 1996. Strathclyde European Partnership Ltd worked on behalf of the wider partnership to implement European Structural Funds in Western Scotland. The members of the company are Scottish Enterprise, the 12 local authorities, the 5 local enterprise companies and the West of Scotland Colleges' Partnership on behalf of the wider partnership. The main functions of SEP Ltd were to manage all aspects of the implementation of European Structural Funds Programmes delegated by the Scottish Executive, as managing authority, and to serve the wider aims of the Strathclyde European Partnership.
There were similar organisations in the Highlands & Islands, the East and South of Scotland, as well as a Scottish ESF Objective 3 Partnership operating in Lowland Scotland.
Full details on European Structural Funds Programmes in Western Scotland are
available.