Oxford has scored better than any other city in England as they’ve been named the best city for growth potential in the country, closely pushed by Cambridge in second. A report, published this week by Arcadis, highlights Oxford as having huge potential with only Edinburgh rating higher in the UK based report.

Both cities are set to be boosted by the Oxford – Milton Keynes – Cambridge corridor and we’re joined by key stakeholders, regional authorities and public/private sector leaders to ensure that opportunities are taken at the Oxford Cambridge Corridor Economic Growth Conference in June.

The report from Arcadis looked at several areas including economic performance, branding, housing, quality of life and place, people and growth and infrastructure. These measures are used to identify the attractiveness for future inward and overseas investment for both social and economic growth. Oxford came out with a total score of 56.1% with Cambridge on 55.8%, with only Edinburgh topping them within the UK with a score of 65.5%. The report looked at a total of 24 cities in the UK.

Collaboration and JV investments and developments were highlighted as key to fulfilling the potential, especially in areas such as housing and infrastructure – and that’ll be a huge focus of the Oxford Cambridge Corridor Economic Growth Conference. The report says the corridor will improve investment potential through reducing congestion, making housing more affordable and enhancing connectivity. The corridor plays a huge part in the three priority areas for future investment:

  • Housing – to reduce the ratio of average house prices against average earnings.
  • Road congestion – reducing the hours spent per year in traffic congestion.
  • Enhanced airport connectivity – to improve journey times to and from the airport to a number of flight destinations from the closest airport.

The first two of these have been given top priority in the work of the Oxfordshire Growth Board (consisting of all six Oxfordshire local authorities). The £215 million Housing and Growth Deal between Oxfordshire and the government is expected to be signed off at the end of this month. This will support the opening up of new housing sites around the county and the development of a Local Industrial Strategy for Oxfordshire, involving the expansion of employment sites, especially in Science Vale UK, bringing new resources to address urgent skills gaps, and developing deals with the life sciences and artificial intelligence sectors.

Councillor Bob Price, Board Member for Economic Development and Regeneration, Oxford City Council, and Chair of the Oxfordshire Growth Board, said: “These results reflect the messages that we have been getting consistently from our business sector colleagues over the past two to three years. The Government has recognised the county’s enormous economic potential and is backing us with substantial new infrastructure investment. Through the Local Enterprise Partnership, we are working to encourage inwards investment and supporting the many new start-up businesses that are the hallmark of the local economy.

“Oxford is a key centre in the UK’s knowledge economy, and initiatives such as the Oxford-Cambridge ‘brain belt’ will support the development of the city region so that we capitalise on the unique resources that are available in this county. The Growth Board recognises that one of the city and county’s attractions for investors is the quality of the environment and its cultural offer, and our future plans will ensure that these are enhanced and nurtured as part of our Joint Spatial Plan.”

A great report from Arcadis highlighting the huge focus that construction and property will need to have on these two huge cities.

Book onto the Oxford Cambridge Corridor Economic Growth Conference to join in the regional economic discussion and be at the forefront of the industry.