Ten Years of the City Deal
Last month we marked ten years of Region’s City Deal and brought together the council leaders with UK and Scottish government leads at the site of the new Renfrew bridge, which will open in the coming months.
Ten years on and there is much to celebrate. The City Deal has delivered major infrastructure projects and has been a catalyst for thousands of new homes, improved connectivity and transformed public realm such as the new Govan – Partick bridge which opened recently.
We announced that our City Deal is estimated to have attracted over £880 million worth of follow-on investment since 2014. This includes new housing and commercial development at locations around City Deal projects. For example, City Deal funded remediation and work to improve connectivity at Tradeston has opened up an area south of the river to commercial development, with the new Barclays Campus the biggest inward investment ever in Scotland.
It has also created and sustained thousands of jobs and supported local businesses while dynamic new sectors of our local economy have been nurtured and boosted. City Deal projects have underpinned the Region’s three Innovation Districts and been instrumental in boosting our booming innovation economy which is key to future prosperity and growth.
Watch our new Ten-Year video to see progress to date.
The City Deal has also been the foundation of our partnership of councils which has continued to go from strength to strength, with an ever-growing number of key programmes funded by the UK and Scottish Governments.
5G Innovation Region – Announcement
In October we announced the successful applicants for the new Smart and Connected Social Places (SCSP) 5G Innovation Fund, which ran from August to September 2024.
We had a fantastic response with an enormous number of applications and following a rigorous selection process, 11 projects were awarded funding from across local authorities in the Region. These innovative projects will leverage advanced wireless technology to transform sectors such as Smart Social Housing, Connected Care, and Data Aggregation.
Glasgow City Region was named last year as one of ten successful 5G Innovation Regions, which will share funding of £36 million from the UK Government for a range of ambitious projects.
Our projects are about keeping people safe, well, and socially connected in their homes and local communities. The projects will bring innovation and harness the power of connectivity, digital and data to transform services and improve lives.
You can find out more about our UK Government DSIT funded Smart and Connected Social Programme by watching the new animation.
Accelerating Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
Just this week the Region secured funding of £3.5 million from Transport Scotland to support the acceleration of new electric vehicle (EV) charge points.
The funding, and a new collaboration agreement in place with the local councils on the expansion of the local EV charging network, should see over 3,000 additional charge points installed over the coming years.
These new charge points will be delivered by a private sector operator, appointed by the councils, and include a mixture of charging speeds, installed across the Region.
Over the coming months the eight councils will be working intensively to scope the shape of proposal that will go to the market, with the goal of enabling a comprehensive network of EV charging across the Region. This includes widening access to charge points for the thousands of people who live in flats and can’t charge at home, as well as providing charge points in areas that typically may not be attractive to the private sector, enabling a more just transition zero emission forms of transport.
Budget Briefing by our Intelligence Hub
Our Intelligence Hub has summarised the key policy announcements from the Autumn Budget and their impact on businesses and households in Glasgow City Region.
View the Autumn Budget 2024 Summary Note here.
We look forward to continuing discussions with Government on the Region’s Investment Zone and on an extended Innovation Accelerator programme, both of which we were delighted to see confirmed within the Budget.
Living Wage Region
Finally, this week we launched our campaign to Make Glasgow City Region a Living Wage Region, the first region in Scotland to do so.
Backed by Living Wage Scotland, we have set targets to grow both the number of accredited Living Wage employers, and employees being paid at least the real Living Wage.
The Action Group of employers driving the campaign brings together all eight local councils, with NHS Boards, large businesses, charities, and smaller employers. Members of the Action Group will encourage and support other employers to pay the real Living Wage based on their own positive experiences.
Evidence shows that those paid below the Living Wage are more likely to be women and work part-time, and low pay is recognised to be more common in specific sectors including hospitality, retail, and manufacturing.
We know that tackling low pay is crucial to creating a stronger, more inclusive economy and improving productivity across the City Region. These are key challenges for the Region. And that is why we want to encourage more organisations to become accredited Living Wage employers.
Find out more about becoming an accredited Living Wage Employer – contact accreditation@povertyalliance.org or visit www.livingwagescotland.org
