Bradford Economy – Key Facts
A Young and Growing Population

Bradford is the 5th largest local authority in the UK after Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow and Sheffield with a
growing population of 526,400.

Over the ten years to 2013, Bradford’s population increased by 47,000, only London, Birmingham and
Manchester had a bigger increase.

Bradford has a diverse population with ethnic minorities making up 36% of the total population. There are
85 languages spoken in the district.

23.5% of the population are under 16 years compared with 18.8% nationally, making Bradford the
youngest city in the UK.

By 2024 the population is expected to increase to 565,000. The work age population will increase by
24,000 to 353,000.

Growing population means a growing need for jobs – 26,000 needed by 2021 to match national
employment rate.

Bradford Council’s Housing Requirements Study 2013 estimated a requirement for between 2,210 and
2,565 dwellings per year across Bradford District to meet housing need.

Bradford requires 42,000 new dwellings by 2028.
A Big Economy

Bradford has a big economy worth over £8.7bn, the third largest in the Yorkshire region after Leeds and
Sheffield. Bradford is the eleventh largest economy in the UK and eighth in England.

Bradford is a fast growing economy. Between 2010 and 2012 - Bradford GVA increased by £375m, a rise
of 4.8% which was higher than the UK average of 4.2%. Bradford growth was higher than Leeds,
Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Birmingham and Bristol.

Predicted GVA growth of 25% over next ten years is faster than regional growth of 24% but not as high as
UK growth of 28%.

The number of private sector jobs increased by 3,500 between 2012 and 2013 – a 2.6% rise that was
higher than UK growth of 2.1%.
Businesses and jobs

There are 15,200 businesses employing 195,000 people in Bradford District. Bradford accounts for 15% of
the total employment in the Leeds City Region, second only to Leeds itself.

A number of major companies have their headquarters in the district including Morrisons, Yorkshire
Building Society, Santander, Provident Financial, Pace PLC and Hallmark Cards.

Bradford is home to three FTSE 350 companies, more than any other city in Yorkshire. (Morrisons, Pace,
Provident)

There are more than 40 large companies are headquartered in the District employing more than 25,000
people within Bradford District itself and 370,000 across the UK as a whole with a combined turnover of
over £30 billion

Bradford is a producer city. There are 1,280 production businesses in Bradford (manufacturing, energy
and utilities) employing 27,200 people in the district accounting for 14% of all employees compared to
10% across Great Britain as a whole. The value of production output in the district increased between
2008 and 2010 to £1.9bn – 23.5% of Bradford’s total GVA.
Bradford Economy Key Facts – December 2014

Bradford has 24,600 jobs in manufacturing, the 3rd highest number of any city or district in the UK.

Bradford has a powerful culture of entrepreneurship. 32,000 people in the district are self-employed.

There was an increase of 530 in the number of businesses over the year to December 2014
Labour market and skills

Bradford’s labour market position is relatively poor when compared to regional and national averages.
Bradford’s work age employment rate at December 2014 was 65.3% compared to the Leeds City Region
rate of 70.6% and a UK rate of 72.2%.

Bradford’s unemployment rate at December 2014 was 8.6% compared to Leeds City Region of 7.2% and a
UK rate of 6.4%.

Improvements have been made in economic activity, employment, unemployment and inactivity in
Bradford district over the three years to December 2014.

The number of work age people in employment in the district increased by 12,600 to 214,800 over the
three years to December 2014. This was a 6.2% increase compared with 3.6% nationally.

Unemployment fell by 8,600 to 20,200 over the same period, a fall of 29.9% compared to 20.4%
nationally.

Youth unemployment remains a key issue particularly given Bradford youthful population profile. Rates in
Bradford are the highest in the Leeds City Region and 5.1% of all 18- 24 year olds in Bradford are
claiming JSA. This is almost twice the UK youth claimant rate of 2.6%.

84,300 people of working age in Bradford are highly qualified (degree level or above) which is 25.7% of
the work age population compared to a Leeds City Region figure of 30.6% and a UK figure of 35.8%.

However the number of highly qualified people rose by 11,600 over the three years to December 2014
which was an increase of 16.0% that was higher the Leeds City Region increase of 9.9% and a UK
increase of 10.9%.

There are 44,400 working age people with no qualifications, a higher proportion of the population than the
regional and national averages. However that number has fallen by 16,500 since 2010.

Median weekly full-time earnings for Bradford residents are £447.10, below the regional average of
£479.00 and the UK average of 518.00. Since 2010 median earnings have increased by 5.8% which is
more than a regional increase of 3.9% and national growth of 3.6%.

31% of households in Bradford have gross income less than £15K
Connectivity

Bradford’s transport infrastructure does not reflect the scale of a city and district that is the 5th largest
local authority in the UK after Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow and Sheffield.

50,400 people commute into Bradford to work and 55,800 people commute out - a total of 96,200
commuter trips every day.

46,000 people commute between Bradford and Leeds each day, the largest flow between any two cities in
the UK. Bradford receives a significant net inflow of commuters from Kirklees and Calderdale.

If Bradford is to realise its economic potential, both as a key element of the Leeds City Region economy
and as one of the UK’s largest cities, it is crucial that transport connectivity is improved.

Improving the Caldervale Line including electrification remains a top priority alongside re-opening the
Wortley Curve to enable direct trains to London that do not require routing through Leeds station.

Bradford is also clear on the importance of securing direct train/Tram links to Leeds Bradford International
Airport.
Visitor economy
Bradford Economy Key Facts – December 2014

Bradford’s Visitor Economy is worth £550m with an estimated 9.2 million people visiting the district each
year.

The volume of staying trips into the district is estimated at 626,000 trips per year, 91% of which are made
by domestic visitors and 9% by overseas visitors. Staying visitors spend an estimated 2.4 million nights in
the district.

Bradford has been designated the world’s first UNESCO City of Film, Bradford is a thriving cultural
destination with a packed events calendar, award winning museums and galleries and impressive
theatres.

Saltaire model village is one of only two World Heritage sites in Yorkshire while the National Media
Museum in the city centre is among the most visited museums outside London averaging over 400,000
visitors a year.

Bradford theatres attract 380,000 visits a year.

The City Centre has seen 3 new hotels built in recent years.
Economic regeneration

Despite a challenging global economic climate, Bradford is delivering a steady stream of wealth creating
projects and is a city centre that offers real potential for growth. The value of investment on site in 2014
amounted to estimated £725 million of which £525m was in the city centre.

Between April 2014 and March 2015 the Council received 262 planning applications and 123 building
control applications. This is a significant 58% increase on the previous year’s figures which of 153
planning applications and 72 building control applications.

The ProLogis development was secured with Marks and Spencer moving into their largest distribution
centre in Europe. More recently P&B foods have on agreed a 200k sq ft new build property development
on the site.

Bradford has recently worked with Jet 2 to secure a new training centre development that will create 30
new jobs at the training centre alongside additional new jobs at Leeds Bradford International Airport.

Buck Lane High Technology Business Park work began in 2013. A number of companies are in the process
of moving into premises onto the site including Produmax – an engineering company who supply
components to the Aerospace industry including parts for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Significant public investment has focused on improving the quality of the public realm including the award
winning City Park and Bradford Heritage Streets improvements

The new £50 million Bradford College Campus building named after the Bradford artist David Hockney
opened in 2014.

Work has also started on Bradford College's new £10 million advanced technology building, which should
be ready to take students in September 2015. The Advanced Technology Centre will accommodate 700
students.

Work is due to start on the new rail station at Apperley Bridge following a government grant of almost £10
million towards the project. The station is one of two planned on the line between Bradford and Leeds as
part of the £16 million Leeds Rail Growth scheme.

A partnership bid led by the University of Bradford has won £3.8M from the Department of Business
Innovation and Skills (BIS) to establish a University Enterprise Zone in digital health innovation in the city,
one of only 4 bids to be selected for funding across the UK.

The Digital Health Enterprise Zone has been strengthened by a further successful bid to host the Digital
Catapult Centre Yorkshire in Bradford, one of only three national catapults that were awarded from 17
national LEP and consortia bids.
Bradford City Centre
Bradford Economy Key Facts – December 2014

The city centre remains the key location for employment in the district, particularly office based
employment. There are 32,700 jobs located in Bradford city centre which is one in six of all jobs in
Bradford district. There are 10,000 jobs in financial and business services, 12,000 in the public sector,
3,500 in retail and 1,400 in accommodation and food based in the city centre.

Bradford currently attracts around 24 million shoppers a year. When the new Westfield Broadway
shopping centre opens in Autumn 2015 it is predicted to attract an additional 9 million shoppers each
year.

With Westfield Broadway, Bradford’s catchment spend potential will increase by 78% on 2013 to £969
million. Bradford will move UP 59 places to No. 26 in CACI UK Retail Rankings.

With Westfield Broadway, The city will be the 3rd largest retail centre in the region and will boast one of
the youngest catchment’s of any major retail centre in the UK.

Westfield will create 2,500 new jobs in the city.

Bradford’s City Centre Growth Zone continues to gather momentum with businesses signing up to the
programme, creating jobs and occupying vacant units. To date more than 190 companies have been
supported to create 341 new jobs stimulating £15 million of capital investment in the city and bringing 47
vacant properties into use. The current pipeline suggests an additional 300 jobs will be created in the
next 12 months as a result of the capital investments that are just beginning to realise their job potential
and the ongoing Business Rate Rebate Scheme.

City Centre footfall – Darley Street has seen a 7% increase over the last year

Number of vacant units down by 1%

Over 20 new cafes, bars and restaurants opened in the City Centre in recent years

New events and festivals including Bradford Festival are generating significant economic benefits through
increased visitor spend. Since 2012 City park events have attracted over half a million visitors and
generated over £7 million of additional spend.

Despite budget cuts and resultant jobs losses, The Council has supported regeneration by relocating 2,000
of its staff into city centre offices and continues to do so through the refurbishment of the former central
library and Mercury house offices that will see more staff moving into the centre.

The council continues to work on a number of inward investment propositions including:
•
On the Tyrls site the Council is working closely with the Magistrates Court to relocate the existing cells
in the Tyrls building into a new facility within the basement of the courts). The Tyrls building has been
demolished and the site marketed for Grade A office accommodation (early 2015). Ambition is to
create 60,000 sq ft of spec built office
•
Anchor Housing have signed a lease taking most of the Aldermanbury building assisted by a City
Centre Growth Zone grant offer. Means Bradford has retained 200 jobs and attracted 150 new jobs
into the centre.
•
Following negotiations between the Council and the HCA the Council’s Executive confirmed their
agreement to accept the transfer of the former Odeon. Following public consultations and expressions
of interest work, the council has chosen a preferred scheme to redevelop the site that is currently
being developed – a new music, arts and conference venue (for 4,000) called ‘Bradford Live’.
•
The council has entered into a partnership with a consortium of property developers, funders and
public sector programme managers, to create a public service hub building in Bradford. This will allow
the existing Jacob's Well offices to be demolished, making way for a new state-of-the-art building on
the same site. By 2017 any suitable public bodies including; charities, civil service departments, local
authorities, NHS bodies, police, emergency services will be given the opportunity to move into a 200
000sq ft, BREAM excellent facility at Jacobs Well. It will become a regional hub for public sector
employment and accommodate up to 3500 staff allowing any public sector operator to deliver more
cost effective, streamlined services and share information and working practices.
Housing
Bradford Economy Key Facts – December 2014

House building across the district has increased since Westfield went on site in 2013. There were
approximately 720 net additions to the housing stock over the year to April 2013, and approximately 825
net additions over the year to April 2014.

There is also increasing developer interest in creating more housing in the city centre. In the last 10
months 35 new homes have received planning permission for conversion from unused office and retail
units in Darley Street and Piccadilly alone and some are already on site.

The proposed redevelopment of Arndale House next to the Broadway Shopping Centre will include 98 one
and two bedroom apartments aimed at young professionals. Mark Brearley, letting agent for the
development said recently “We’re starting to see a lot more city centre living in Bradford now”

Bradford Planning report increased interest in a number of planned large scale residential schemes halted
during the recession that could see a substantial increase in city centre housing numbers.

The Council has supported Incommunities in the delivery of two housing projects in Goitside. The first
involved the remodelling of two blocks of empty walk up flats to create 17 family properties. The second
development involving two private sector partners is due for completion late summer early autumn this
year ad comprises 13 affordable rented properties, 10 market rented properties and 10 sale properties.
And finally…

Bradford’s City Park has over a 100 fountains, including the tallest fountain in any UK city, which can
reach more than 30m (100ft).

Bradford District has the highest, regular scheduled bus route in England. It starts in Keighley, travelling
through Haworth and over the moors to Hebden Bridge in neighbouring Calderdale.

The Little Germany area in Bradford city centre, once the home of the world’s leading wool merchants, has
Europe’s highest concentration of listed buildings.

The concept of ‘shopping from home’ was pioneered in Bradford by Empire Stores and the city remains the
home of Britain’s biggest home shopping companies.

The term “World Wide Web” was used first in a journal published by the Bradford based academic
publisher Emerald.

Bradford is home to the Topic Folk club, the longest continuous running Folk Club in the world.

Bradford was named UK Curry Capital for the fourth year in a row in 2014.

The Nobel prize winning physicist Edward Appleton and the astronomer Sir Fred Hoyle – credited with
coining the term ‘Big Bang’ – were both born and educated in Bradford.

David Hockney, artist, Frederick Delius, composer and J.B.Priestley, author, were all born in Bradford.

Zayn Malik, formerly of One Direction, and the magician Dynamo (Steven Frayne) are from Bradford.
Bradford Economy Key Facts – December 2014