Birmingham has been rejuvenated in recent years by rapid improvement of the city. This makes Britain’s second city an ideal place in which to live and work because of decreased unemployment and this new wave of projects designed to regenerate the city and surrounding areas. Birmingham has an impressive total of 3 universities namely, Birmingham City University (BCU), Aston University and the University of Birmingham. Also, Birmingham can offer excellent career prospects, affordable housing along and a thriving nightlife, The consulting group of PwC along with Demos thinktank took into account a number of factors when determining that the West Midlands city was the most improved for its index of 2017 Good Growth for Cities campaign. These factors included transportation, health and inequality, work-life balance and income levels.
There was a significant reduction in the amount of unemployed individuals in the city which boosted Birmingham’s image. The number of unemployed decreased from 11.4% in 2013 to 7.4% just last year while the national average in August was just 4.3%. Birmingham has more work to do to match the national average but it is a significant and impressive effort.
Birmingham seems to be enjoying its newfound economic condition, especially after it has been in decline for several years. A facelift to the city’s image is still underway and this includes the New Street Station redevelopment and the very impressive Grand Central shopping which boasts some of the finest shopping including the new John Lewis which is back in the city centre after many years away.
With a thousand jobs being transferred from London to Birmingham by HSBC and HS2 construction also providing a boost to the economy more improvement is to be expected. Additionally, Birmingham was chosen as the host city for England’s bid in the 2022 Commonwealth Games selection because it pledged to showcase Britain business as well as the competition.
The gap appears to be closing between the South and the Midlands, as well as northern England, According to the 2017 index, the top performers in improvement to cities also include Newcastle, Leeds, Liverpool and Derby. Near the bottom of the list were Stockton, Middleborough, Swansea and Sunderland.
Some believe that there are other contributing factors to the recent ascent of Birmingham. They suggest that the city’s newly elected Mayor, Andy Street, may have something to do with it. It is thought that, as with other cities, the city’s government has taken a stronger position as it devolves power away from Westminster and takes more control unto itself.
The conclusion is that Birmingham has taken its position as a highly desirable city in which to live, work and play.
Amber Windows has always had its Offices and Manufacturing Facilities in Birmingham since its inception over 25 years ago. It is very proud of its brummie heritage and is now seen as one of the largest family owned independent home improvement Companies in the Midlands.