Dr Marianne Sensier, Professor Fiona Devine and Dr Elvira Uyarra have conducted research comparing the economic resilience of UK sub-regions in recovery from the 2008 financial crisis. In this blog, they map the resilience across the UK in recovery from the financial crisis and suggest policies for increasing resilience for recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. […]
Building back a gender balanced better – devolution, growth and equalities
As the initial period of lockdown is slowly relaxed, the policy agenda in all parts of the UK is turning to examine recovery from the economic devastation caused by the pandemic. Policymakers in our major city regions are considering how to start up and stimulate economic activity where safe to do so; help firms and […]
Health for wealth: The link between health inequalities and productivity in northern England
Productivity in the UK, and particularly in the northern regions of England, has remained stubbornly low for decades, prompting economists to discuss a ‘productivity puzzle’. Here, Dr Luke Munford, explains how his research into health inequalities in northern England shows that investing in the health of the population could translate directly into substantial gains in […]
Locked down by inequality: Why place matters for older people during COVID-19
Older people have borne the brunt of deaths from COVID-19, whether in hospital or in care homes. At the same time, the coronavirus emergency sits alongside a crisis in many of the communities in which older people live. In this blog, Chris Phillipson, Camilla Lewis, Tine Buffel, Patty Doran and Sophie Yarker examine how the […]
Build in haste, repent at leisure? Post-pandemic planning at the precipice
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to discussions on what shape planning should take post-crisis. Here, Prof Iain White, Prof Graham Haughton, and Dr Nuno Pinto outline how current regulations have exacerbated difficulties for some people in lockdown, discuss how opportunistic developers or politicians may seek to hijack the policy responses, and suggest solutions to ensure […]
Levelling up regional resilience
Dr Marianne Sensier and Dr Elvira Uyarra have conducted research comparing the economic resilience, community wellbeing, sustainability and governance of Greater Manchester and Preston in recovery from the 2008 financial crisis. The financial crisis provided a window of opportunity for some places to develop new arrangements to adapt and diversify regional economies. In this blog, […]
Can we ‘level up’ transport infrastructure across the UK?
Professor Diane Coyle and Dr Marianne Sensier have recently conducted research comparing transport infrastructure projects that have used HM Treasury’s Green Book. In this blog they argue that this methodology, alongside political prioritisation of projects in and around London, has reinforced existing success in wealthy, already highly productive parts of the UK. Future infrastructure investment […]
The gender pay gap in Greater Manchester: What it tells us and what it doesn’t tell us about gender equality
The gender pay gap is considered a key indicator of gender equality as a whole. Here, Professor Jill Rubery breaks down the data behind local and national pay disparity, and offers policy based solutions which positively affect both male and female workers. The narrower gender pay gap in Greater Manchester, compared to England as a […]
Can Greater Manchester blaze the trail with an inclusive local industrial strategy?
Greater Manchester (GM) is one of a handful of ‘trailblazer’ areas selected to work with government on a local industrial strategy (LIS), due to be signed off in a few weeks’ time. As deliberations enter their final stages, Ruth Lupton, Head of the Inclusive Growth Analysis Unit (IGAU), looks at how the strategy might shape […]
The Long-Term Policy Failures in Education – The Northern Powerhouse and a Fairer Start
The start of the new school year, debates about the value of homework and concerns about how the Northern Powerhouse education fund is being spent are a further reminder of the inequalities in the UK education system. It is a priority that policy makers focus on addressing the long-term inequalities in the education system. As […]