Structural Transformation, Adaptability and City Economic Evolutions

Duration: 10/15 – 03/18

In recent years there has been an increased focus on the role of cities and city-regions in national development. Structural Transformation, Adaptability and City Economic Evolutions focuses on the role of urban areas in driving growth, particularly the potential of the northern cities to address the geographic imbalance of the British economy.

The project will explore the historical development of British cities and the ways this has been determined by structural change and economic governance. Central to this research is the evolution of urban economies from manufacturing to services, and the different trajectories that British cities have followed.

The project outputs will include a range of new datasets covering key areas such as employment and productivity, as well as a series of detailed case studies. These findings will not only provide an important picture of the development of city regions over the past four decades, but also support the design of current urban policies in the north of the country.