TY - CHAP AB - Purpose The aim of this chapter is to challenge the assumption that top-down approaches to economic development and growth are the best way forward for rural areas. Looking at the work of the current LEADER programme and LEADER project examples, the chapter measures the impacts of small-scale, bottom-up approaches to foster rural development. It considers the importance of the LEADER approach as a key component of the current rural policy framework.Methodology The chapter provides a discussion of top-down versus neo-endogenous approaches to rural growth, drawing on policy and practitioner literature. Four case studies from the current LEADER programme are used to demonstrate how the LEADER approach brings about growth at a local level, and how this can be measured using a Social Return on Investment (SROI) approach.Findings LEADER, as a programme, can deliver sustainable and effective economic growth through a series of small-scale interventions by stimulating entrepreneurial activity in the context of neo-endogenous growth. This forms a useful complementary strand to the top-down policy of major sectoral interventions profiled in this chapter in the context of current England-wide policy approaches to economic development. The SROI approach provides an effective tool for capturing the longer term effects of LEADER.Practical implications Considering the broader SROI and sustainable credentials of LEADER-stimulated business development provides a new and more robust means of both communicating the achievements of the programme and a rationale for giving it greater prominence.Originality/value The chapter establishes a new place-based approach to considering the wider impact of LEADER projects through an SROI approach. The insights help provide new insights into the contribution of this programme to economic development in rural communities. VL - 4 SN - 978-1-78441-109-1, 978-1-78441-112-1/2040-7246 DO - 10.1108/S2040-724620140000004004 UR - https://doi.org/10.1108/S2040-724620140000004004 AU - Annibal Ivan AU - Price Liz PY - 2014 Y1 - 2014/01/01 TI - The Role of ‘Leader’ in Delivering Resilient Communities T2 - Exploring Rural Enterprise: New Perspectives On Research, Policy & Practice T3 - Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research PB - Emerald Group Publishing Limited SP - 81 EP - 104 Y2 - 2024/03/28 ER -