Manchester’s New Era of Innovation: Driving Change Through Growth Locations

Greater Manchester’s Trailblazer Devolution Deal has given the city greater powers and a renewed sense of confidence to invest in the city and create opportunities for future generations. With a section dedicated to fiscal devolution forming part of the deal, the world’s first industrial city is looking back to its past and heritage to plan for a new era of innovation.

As part of its ambitions to become a world-leading destination for innovators, investors and businesses, Greater Manchester is committed to creating groundbreaking solutions to global challenges. However, as part of the overarching mission to create a greener, fairer and more prosperous city-region, leaders are agreed that any investment in innovation must foster inclusive growth that benefits all communities and people.

That’s why Greater Manchester has identified six Growth Locations, which represent opportunities for the whole city-region to bring forward development at scale and drive transformational change across all ten boroughs.

The identified growth locations are;

• North East Growth Corridor (Bury, Oldham, Rochdale)
• Eastern Growth Cluster (Tameside, Ashton-under-Lyne and Hyde)
• Airport & Southern Growth Corridor (Stockport town centre, HS2, airport)
• Central Growth Cluster (Oxford Road Corridor, Manchester Piccadilly, Salford Innovation Triangle)
• Western Gateway (Port Salford and connections to Port of Liverpool)
• Wigan & Bolton Growth Corridor

The locations cover significant assets including the Salford Innovation Triangle, Trafford Clean Energy Park, the Oxford Road Corridor and the Advanced Machinery and Productivity Institute (AMPI) in Rochdale. They offer direct links to world-leading innovation assets and R&D professionals, with each growth location leveraging its closest assets and opportunities, contributing to a wider innovation ecosystem across the city region.

These growth locations will support new employment and growth in Greater Manchester’s key sectors while working with the region’s world-leading academic institutions to integrate R&D activity with industry, encouraging innovation around sector strengths.

They also include proposals for thousands of new homes, to ensure residents across the region have good places to call home. These homes will be low carbon and high quality and supported by a much-improved, sustainable transport infrastructure. Transport is a key driver for growth, to ensure people can easily access employment, skills and training opportunities. With capped fares and connecting bus, tram, train and active travel, residents will have less need for cars and can travel using reliable, sustainable transport. Investment in an integrated transport network will increase connectivity and fuel growth within our towns away from the city centre, creating better, more desirable places to live and work.

Each growth location will also support Greater Manchester’s carbon ambitions, from being connected to low-carbon transport to being exemplars of low-carbon design and delivery. With a science-based target to become net zero by 2038, Greater Manchester’s future investments and innovations must have sustainability at the heart.

To help these growth locations succeed and to support the region’s innovation plan, Greater Manchester is looking to work in partnership with private sector and public sector organisations who share their vision. One of Greater Manchester’s biggest strengths is the legacy and longevity of public and private sector collaboration across the region.

For many years local authorities have worked with private sector partners and established long-lasting relationships, partners become part of the region’s growth journey. This strength of partnership and collaboration is the reason why we can present so strongly on an international stage. A strong public and private sector voice instils confidence in Manchester’s innovation ambition. To lead the next industrial revolution, the region must share long-term development partners that share the same values, passion and ambition.

With six key growth locations already earmarked, the region has forged more opportunities for collaboration across localities. LREF will allow investors to learn more about them and how they can join Manchester on its next innovation journey.

To learn more about Greater Manchester at LREF visit www.placemanchester.com