How True North network can improve region's productivity, prosperity and purpose: Marcus Armstrong
After six weeks of intense political campaigning focused on how the UK economy can be re-geared for long-term growth, the dawn of a new government provides an apt moment to reflect on the role Yorkshire and the wider North have to play.
Notably, this wasn’t a general election campaign framed by concepts such as Levelling Up or the Northern Powerhouse. However, the latent economic potential within the regions remains an opportunity to be unleashed.
Indeed, the Centre for Cities’ timely report ahead of the recent G7 summit summarised it well: the major difference between the UK and its international counterparts is the low level of productivity in its regional cities, including Leeds and Sheffield.
The report supports the idea that the UK’s ‘secondary’ cities remain attractive for business investment, delivering relatively high levels of employment, but their underperformance lies in the fact that the most productive and knowledge-intensive activity sits elsewhere in the country.
Centre for Cities’ findings echoed and quantified many of the challenges we raised in the autumn when launching True North – a network of purpose-led organisations focused on supporting a more prosperous and connected northern economy.
Consensus among the True North network, a rapidly expanding collaboration of like-minded organisations, is that government policy and decision-making needs to start transcending parliamentary cycles to create the best conditions for success – be that on skills, innovation, sustainable growth or social impact. The chasm between northern productivity and prosperity only serves to underline this point.
We also need to move away from the competitive funding model that has characterised devolution so far and, where funding is available – in areas such as urban development and regeneration – ensure that communities are active participants. Encouraging civic engagement can only empower communities and foster a sense of ownership.
It’s important, though, that we don’t view economic growth and prosperity as entirely contingent upon public sector investment. In the absence of an abundant public purse at the start of this parliament, there are opportunities for impactful grassroot action.
Chief among these is the opportunity to better align talent with the skills business needs, through greater collaboration and identifying where the greatest inclusive opportunities lie to support the region’s prosperity.
Government statistics highlight that Yorkshire is one of the UK’s least socially mobile counties. It follows then that there is a real opportunity for businesses in the region to unlock new employment pathways – supporting accessibility while harnessing the potential of harder to reach communities.
At the same time, it is imperative that there is a focus on upskilling and reskilling people for the knowledge-based industries of the future – be that in AI, life sciences or advanced manufacturing, in which Yorkshire is already well-placed.
Private capital will be critical here, not just in transitioning the skills base but also ensuring our innovation industries are able to fund growth. A long-standing challenge faced by companies in the region is the transition from start-up to scaleup. In the coming years we need to encourage and promote an environment where UK investors are more willing to take risks on the entrepreneurial ideas that stem from our research institutes and forward-thinking regional businesses that we consider to be our ‘northern stars’. Yorkshire-based investors are recognising the opportunities presented by rapid technological change but there is still a need to accelerate the deployment of risk capital into industries of the future and define success in job creation and skills development, as well as sustainable business growth.
More broadly, we also need to recognise that commercial success and positive societal impact aren’t mutually exclusive. Indeed, it is purpose-led businesses – those that are committed to leading by example on issues like diversity and sustainability – that are most attractive to employees and investors. We’re already seeing this in the success of those in the UK’s growing B Corp community.
This year, we launched our True North advisory council along with a partnership with Leeds-based Open Innovations – a not-for-profit open data specialist – with the aim of identifying data-led practical solutions that can contribute to unlocking the true potential of the North.
Many of the organisations involved in the network are already breaking down barriers and delivering in their own communities. They’re also opening up access to the workplace to create employment opportunities for the next generation, driving investment into the region through hubs of innovation and powering sustainable growth.
As we anticipate moving into a period of greater stability following the turbulence of recent years, through the True North network we can encourage greater adoption of this mindset and collaborative approach – as a network of purpose-led businesses – and play our part in unlocking a more prosperous Yorkshire and, in turn, a more prosperous region as a whole.
Marcus Armstrong is partner and business services practice group head at law firm Brabners