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Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council economic development leader appointed to IED Board

Moe Forouzan, Team Manager – Business and Innovation at Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, has been elected to the Board of the Institute of Economic Development (IED), the UK’s leading professional body for economic development and regeneration practitioners.

With 19 years’ experience in local government, Moe heads up Blaenau Gwent’s Economic Development Unit, specialising in driving business growth, addressing retention challenges, and managing industrial and office premises, including employment land. His strategic oversight encompasses the development and management of the Council’s business and economic functions, focusing on implementing economic stimulus initiatives, and fostering collaborative networks that both enhance local supply chains and peer-to-peer support.

Moe Forouzan

Moe is particularly passionate about supporting startups, SMEs and business relocation projects, helping them thrive in dynamic and competitive environments. A Trained Master Enterprise Facilitator, he is the only UK certified practitioner of the Sirolli model of Enterprise Facilitation, personally trained by Dr Ernesto Sirolli. This innovative approach provides free and confidential business support to entrepreneurs and social enterprises, empowering local communities through entrepreneurship. Moe’s public sector expertise is underpinned by both an undergraduate and Master’s degree in Business and Enterprise Development obtained from the University of South Wales, and experience in managing family-run businesses.

With his appointment to the IED Board announced at the Institute’s Annual General Meeting on 4th December, Moe revealed that his commitment to economic development is “both professional and personal, driving me to continuously refine my knowledge and deliver impactful outcomes” across the public, private and third sectors. He said this experience made him “highly adaptable and well-suited to leadership roles in diverse business contexts”.

“I am really excited by this opportunity to join the IED Board, and to work with people who are passionate about economic development,” Moe explained. “I am delighted to be part of an organisation that has a clear shared ambition, and is considered a heavyweight in its field. The IED is recognised as a distinctive and highly credible player in economic development, offering unparalleled CPD opportunities and action for the profession, and as a member I already see the value from its activities. The professional development I have experienced has been amazing, always challenging, and focused on helping practitioners to improve. Being on the Board is an opportunity for me to give back too, including through mentoring support. It really is the best place for me to be as a practitioner.

“As an organisation there is an opportunity to develop our links in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but growing membership in Wales is really big for me. I want to help promote the benefits of the IED, and to encourage more and more practitioners to be part of the national economic development movement, which in turn will support the delivery of best practice in local and regional communities in Wales. I have seen austerity in economic development, and how to re-boot it, and now is the time to kick on again.

“We have a UK/Welsh government talking about growth. Growth is one of the biggest ticket items going on and we have got to back economic development because it links to everything. If we invest in economic development, and channel our ambition, we will grow economy.”

Ellie Fry, Corporate Director of Regeneration and Community Services at Blaenau Gwent Council, commented: “This is a really exciting appointment for Moe personally and for the Council professionally. Moe is passionate about economic development and supporting businesses of all sizes to thrive and grow in Blaenau Gwent and I know that he will bring this enthusiasm and commitment to his new role on the Board of the IED. Well done Moe.”

Tom Stannard, Chair of the IED said: “I would like to formally welcome Moe to the IED Board of Directors, and look forward to working with him as we seek to further deliver our mission and push the objectives of our Grow Local, Grow National manifesto across the UK.”

In the 2024 IED Director elections, Megan Streb, Head of Outreach at the What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth and Simon Dancer, Director at AMION Consulting, also joined the Board.

AMION Consulting Director and former Whitehall economist joins the IED Board

Simon Dancer, Director at AMION Consulting, has been appointed to the Board of the Institute of Economic Development (IED), the UK’s leading professional body for economic development and regeneration practitioners.

With over 25 years’ experience in economic development, housing and regeneration, Simon joined the leading UK-wide economics advisory business AMION in 2016 to provide independent strategic advice to its clients to help them achieve economic growth.

Simon Dancer

Simon previously worked in Whitehall for 16 years at the Homes & Communities Agency (now Homes England), managing a team of specialised economists. In addition to an extensive understanding of Green Book economic appraisal and business cases, Simon has co-authored several economics policy guidance notes that have become “industry standards”.  

These include the ground-breaking Employment Densities Guide, applied across the UK, to calculate job capacity within built development; the pioneering Additionality Guide, used around the world to help public sector agencies identify the real effect of government intervention and saw Simon present to a global academic audience at the World Bank in Paris; and the Endowments Best Practice Note, now in its fourth edition, which underpins endowment policy across the country for those assets which cannot be disposed of in the open market.

Some of Simon’s other career highlights include providing housing policy advice for the South Korean government, advising a former Prime Minister’s household, acting as a consultee for updates of HM Treasury’s Green Book, and being the retained economic adviser for the West Midlands Combined Authority for over four years.

Simon was also instrumental with AMION helping to secure £459 million of Levelling Up Fund grant across the country, from the three rounds of competitive bidding. Today he is also a business case adviser for Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, working on Green Book-compliant submissions to both MHCLG and HMT.

With his election to the IED Board announced at the Institute’s Annual General Meeting on 4th December, Simon said: “I am delighted to join the IED, as the go-to centre for excellence in the sector, and one whose insights are a reference point for the economic development profession. With over 25 years’ experience under my belt, 16 in the public sector and now well established in the private sector, putting myself forward for the IED Board feels like a natural position. I see the IED as the kitemark for our profession.”

Simon uses the IED’s well-established online CPD programme for new starters in AMION’s economic development team, and also praised its representation and advocacy work. “The training it provides is a big bonus, bringing a formalised process around on-the-money courses which balance the technical and softer side of economic development,” he commented. “If you work in economic development, the IED is that North Star for the industry. There is a huge opportunity for us to make a difference, to increase our membership, and influence the new government, especially on areas they are not funding yet.”

Tom Stannard, Chair of the IED, said: “I would like to formally welcome Simon to the IED Board of Directors, and look forward to working with him as we seek to further deliver our mission and push the objectives of our Grow Local, Grow National manifesto across the UK.”

In the 2024 IED Director elections, Megan Streb, Head of Outreach at the What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth and Moe Forouzan, Team Manager – Business and Innovation at Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council were, also appointed.

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