Bristol needs to plan now for a more inclusive city
Date: 17/03/2009Bristol needs to plan now for future housing and employment growth and to ensure city residents are skilled up to get into work so everyone can benefit from the future upswing after the recession passes, according to a new report by the Centre for Cities.
Bristol, with an above average employment rate of 73.8%, has maintained a strong economy over the past decade, outperforming all other major English cities outside London. But not all parts of Bristol have shared in this success - like South Bristol, and parts of the inner city. 15.3% of Filwood's working age population are on incapacity benefit, compared to 7.6% citywide.
To ensure Bristol's most deprived communities stand to gain, when the upturn comes:
- Bristol City Council and the West of England Partnership should use the recession period to get plans in place to create mixed communities with a wider range of incomes and households, linked together with a worklessness and skills action plan for the area.
- Bristol City Council should take advantage of reduced price land and housing stock and use the downturn to assemble key sites for development and plan transport links, public space and community services.
- The city's Employment and Skills Board need to commission a long-term skills need assessment - focused on skilling-up and retraining workers in South Bristol communities for future jobs.
Catherine Glossop, the report author from the Centre for Cities said,
"Bristol needs to plan now for the upturn. The recession is more severe than first thought and the path to recovery uncertain. It's crucial that Bristol uses the downturn period to work with partners to put together a worklessness and skills action plan - and plan future local housing so when new homes are built and jobs return, the city's most deprived communities benefit."
Councillor Barbara Janke, Leader of Bristol City Council, said:
"I welcome the findings of the report which underlines the stance that the new council Cabinet has always taken. With its partners in the West of England, the city council is determined to ensure that future major developments deliver mixed and sustainable communities - integrating employment and jobs with affordable new homes, public facilities, education and training opportunities, well planned open spaces and effective public transport.
"This report confirms what we have understood for some time and underlines the importance of the work already underway here and across the sub region to up our game when it comes to effective integrated planning for future housing and employment growth and skills development. We welcome the additional research from Centre for the Cities, which will help inform our future consideration of these complex and important issues."
For more information, please contact:
Rosamund Taylor, Acting External Affairs Manager
020 7803 4316 / 07876 175 426
r.taylor@centreforcities.org
Notes to editors:
Inclusive Growth in Bristol: the role for housing, worklessness and skills policy is available at www.centreforcities.org/bristol
Bristol is a Partner City in the Centre for Cities research programme ‘Unlocking City Potential and Sustaining City Growth'. The programme works closely with a small group of cities (Belfast, Brighton, Cambridge, Hull, Sunderland, York) to inform economic development strategies and improve economic performance
The Centre for Cities recently published Into Recession: Vulnerability and Resilience in Leeds, Brighton and Bristol, by Malcolm Cooper and Kieran Larkin. This paper looks into how Leeds' financial, Bristol's manufacturing and Brighton's retail/leisure sectors may be affected by the economic slowdown. The report makes specific recommendations for Bristol offering some practical ideas on what the city can do to minimise the impact of jobs losses and business closures. The paper is available to download at www.centreforcities.org/intorecession
On 26 January, the Centre for Cities launched Cities Outlook 2009. This report ranks the economic performance of 64 of the UK's largest cities and towns. A Bristol fact sheet is available upon request.
This week, the Centre for Cities also launched a report on the impact of migration on city economies and worklessness in Bristol and Hull. Accession to Recession: A8 migration in Bristol & Hull is available from www.centreforcities.org/migration
