West Midlands – the UK’s new growth capital

Official Project Partner: West Midlands Combined Authority

Mayor for the West Midlands Andy Street, has launched the West Midlands Investment Prospectus, showcasing £10Bn worth of investment opportunities across the area.

Positioning the West Midlands as the UK’s new growth capital, the Investment Prospectus showcases 20 transformational schemes which will allow the region to compete on the global stage and further accelerate the economic and cultural renaissance sweeping across the West Midlands. The West Midlands already tops the UK regional table for foreign investment and home-grown business start-ups, and the Prospectus provides investors with a clear road map for joining the hundreds of companies relocating to the UK’s most investable region.

Launching the Prospectus at the MIPIM property show in France, Mayor for the West Midlands Andy Street said the schemes would breathe new life into local communities and continue the region’s march to be at the cutting edge of new world industries.

The Mayor said: “These are exciting times for the West Midlands. Growth is strong and optimism is high.

“We have a drum beat of momentum behind us both economically and culturally.

“Birmingham will host the 2022 Commonwealth Games and Coventry is set to shine as the UK City of Culture in 2021, offering opportunities for investors to help build lasting legacies.

“Our industrial heritage is second to none but we are also home to the industries of tomorrow and are busy creating a new industrial revolution in the very place where it all began.

“So now is the time to invest in the UK’s new growth capital and its most liveable, investable and competitive region.”

Unprecedented levels of investment are already being driven into the region, in both housing and infrastructure, and especially transport, with the new HS2 line due to open in 2026.

When HS2 is operational, the region will be just 38 minutes from London – and the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is using newly acquired powers and funding transferred from central government to further drive the growth and investment needed to fulfil the region’s ambitions.

The prospectus comes hot on the heels of extra funding announced by the government towards housing in the region. Valued at £350M, the deal includes funding for the Commonwealth Games Athletes Village in north Birmingham. The Housing Deal is seen as the first step in an ambitious programme of joint work and investment between the West Midlands and government to deliver 215,000 new homes by 2031.

“We are a region of growth and innovation and we have all the fundamentals in place for successful investment along with the determination and talent to deliver,” added Mayor Street.

“That’s why the UK government is backing us to deliver, our local authorities are backing us to deliver and the private sector is backing us to deliver.

The Mayor said the sheer range and diversity of the 20 sites also meant there would be something for everyone.

A copy of the Prospectus and details of all 20 sites is available here

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