Abstract
Sub-region has become highlighted as the spatial unit of regional development in England under the promotion of decentralization of government and private sector's engagement in public decision, and the increasing demand for inter-territorial approach to the challenges such as economic effectiveness. We describe the trends toward sub-regional governance both in terms of the discretion in planning and funding, and of the multi-area governance based on partnership among various stakeholders. We concluded as follows: 1) regional strategies and financial resources were supposed to be both integrated to RDA driven by the central government due to the lack of intra-regional coordination, 2) each region designated original boundaries of sub-region, and 3) sub-regional partnerships were shaped through the discussion of MAA supported by existing sub-regional linkage among stakeholders and the authorized local partnerships.
