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Southampton among top business-friendly cities

Southampton

SOUTHAMPTON has sealed its place as the “economic powerhouse of England’s south coast”, a report has said.

The city made it to number 15 in a list of the 21 best British towns and cities for business.

Analysis by Management Today rated major urban centres outside London according to their appeal as “places to run and grow talent-hungry, knowledge-based companies”.

The report said: “Over the past decade Southampton has risen steadily through the league tables for growth, confirming itself as the economic powerhouse of England’s South coast. Network Eagle Lab, an innovative co-working concept, provides business start-up and scale-up space for entrepreneurs and students of two world-class universities.

“As the city undergoes an ambitious scheme of regeneration (£3billion investment since 2012), the council’s vision is that every aspect of Southampton will be connected and accessible, both the digital infrastructure and the physical environment, showcasing a maritime port that is also a clean, green, tech-focused smart city.”

It noted that Southampton’s gross value added (GVA) – the measure of the goods and services it produces – rose 2.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2018. Employment was up 1.9 per cent.

The judges considered the UK’s 643 biggest towns and cities, assessing them on metrics including productivity, the depth of the talent pool, the strength of innovation, the scale of the private sector ecosystem and the rate of growth.

The results were weighted to produce a shortlist of 21, which was then ranked by a panel of judges, referring to the data and submission from the cities themselves.

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/17755267.southampton-among-top-business-friendly-cities/