Manchester is by far the UK’s most creative region outside London, according to a new study.
Commercial property firm CBRE’s ‘Creative Regions report’ showcased the top 25 locations outside the capital.
It ranked them according to “concentration of creative businesses and professionals, deep talent pools of highly educated graduate populations, large and growing millennial populations, good transport connections, quality of life and proximity to world class universities with strong research and computer science ratings”.
Typical industries which flourish in these areas are publishing, film, TV, media, digital, computer programming and information services.
It awarded Manchester a score of 78.6. Reading was second with a score of 67.8, which the CBRE said saw it “punching well above its weight as a creative talent destination, given the size of its office market”.
Edinburgh and Glasgow were in the top five, sandwiching Cambridge. Eleven of the top 25 creative talent locations are in the East and South East, according to the study.
James McLean, senior director of the CBRE advisory & transaction services occupier team, said fears over Brexit were not being carried over into the tech sector.
“The tech phenomena looks set to continue in the UK. Technology and creative industries, in general are not affected by regulatory restrictions or fears over single market access,” he said.
“Contrary to common perception, a large number of these companies are based outside of the capital. Evidence shows that a number of regional centres also contain a critical mass of talent necessary to compete successfully in this sector.
“There are many other tempting reasons to draw creative industries businesses to the UK regions such as attractive quality of life and favourable cost of living.
“Indeed, given the growing cost of higher education, and the cost of living in the capital, the large regional centres are increasingly proving a compelling proposition for graduates and employers alike.”
The top 10
- MANCHESTER – 78.6
- READING – 67.8
- EDINBURGH – 66.7
- CAMBRIDGE – 66.3
- GLASGOW – 64.6
- OXFORD – 64.3
- BIRMINGHAM – 63.0
- BRISTOL – 61.3
- BRIGHTON – 59.0
- LEEDS – 58.8