Integrated transport: The size of the prize for mayors
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities explores how transport integration could improve public transport and support economic growth. Transport is the wiring that allows urban economies to function. But this wiring is faulty in big UK cities outside of London. This presents a problem for a national government wanting to deliver...
How productive are the UK’s big cities?
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities discusses how the UK's large cities have performed over the last 20 years. This briefing dives into the latest subregional productivity data to understand the trends over the past 20 years and what it can tell us about local and national economic performance. It shows that...
Checking out
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities identifies four key reasons why high street vacancy rates vary so much from city to city and how to improve their fortunes. Centre for Cities looks at the variation in performance across high streets in the centres of the UK's largest cties and towns to understand...
Eight sectors, one story
This report from UK think tank the Centre for Cities looks at the geography of the Industrial Strategy. Analysis from Centre for Cities reveals that the eight high-potential sectors targeted by the Industrial Strategy have a strong bias towards the Greater South East. Urban areas are the preferred location for these sectors. But, as noted...
Build to rent: patterns in growth and geography
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities examines the growing role of Build to Rent (BtR) in urban housing delivery. This briefing examines the growing role of Build to Rent (BtR) in urban housing delivery. It explores where BtR developments are concentrated, how the sector has evolved, and what policy changes could help...
The myth of “left behind”
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities looks at why a city-focused industrial strategy will not increase place-based discontent. A common argument in the aftermath of the Brexit vote was that people’s political discontent was the result of the widening divide between city and town. Yet, data shows that constituencies with stronger connections...
The impact of hybrid working on the high street
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities looks at the impact of hybrid working on spending patterns in both city centres and their local neighbourhoods. Five years after the UK went into lockdown, this briefing looks at the impact of hybrid working on spending patterns by workers in both city centres and their...
Restarting housebuilding I: Planning reform and the private sector
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities investigates whether the current planning system has seen private housebuilding reach rates high enough to meet the new national target. Using newly available data on English housebuilding by local authority since 1946, digitised by Centre for Cities, this report investigates whether the current planning system has...
Spending time: The role of the visitor economy in UK cities
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities provides a comprehensive picture of domestic visitor spending across the UK. This report provides a comprehensive picture of domestic visitor spending across the UK’s 63 largest cities for the first time, and sets out the ‘visitor offer’ in each place and how that compares nationally.
Economy first: A pragmatic English Devolution White Paper
This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities states that an economic geography approach to English devolution would be the most pragmatic. The forthcoming English Devolution White Paper will be an important milestone for economic growth and public service reform. The Government is correct to see devolution within England as a priority, and the...