Creating public value in regional policy. Bringing citizens back in

We develop a novel citizen-centred multi-dimensional approach to public value creation in regional policy.Drawing on 47 citizen focus groups in 16 European regions, public values are analysed through an interpretative comparative approach.Goal attainment is a positive and widely held value.However, evaluations of institutional performance and democratic values are more negative.The findings have significant implications for public value management.We propose a five C's public value creation framework emphasizing coherence across public values and the communication and co-creation of public value sustained through capacity building and continuous feedback.Implications for public value theory, European regional policy and future research are discussed.