Business leaders will discuss the progress of the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft Enterprise Zone during a key meeting with MP Brandon Lewis.

The event, organised by commercial law firm Howes and Percival, will give representatives from the energy and education sectors the chance to feed back on whether the zone is boosting the region's economic fortunes.

Meanwhile, special attention will also be given to the skills gap created by the region's successful energy sector – and the prospect of using private sector initiatives to fill it.

Speaking before Friday's (November 9) meeting at the Imperial Hotel in Great Yarmouth, Mr Lewis said: 'This is a really important time for our energy industry. There are a lot of exciting things happening in our area and I am looking forward to hearing some of the ideas on how to really take advantage of this for the benefit of local people.'

Trevor Ivory, a partner at Howes Percival and the Chairman of the event said: 'The Enterprise Zone presents a fantastic opportunity for Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft and we already have a number of businesses developing sites within the zone.

'A year on, we're keen to see what lessons have already been learned and help ensure that energy businesses, developers, professional services, the public sector and representative bodies in the area continue to work together to realise the full potential of the Enterprise Zone.'

The government granted the go-ahead for the enterprise zone in August 2011. It includes 121 hectares of development-ready land across six sites on the east coast offering business benefits such as business rate relief, simplified planning regulations and super-fast broadband.