More businesses being attracted to city centres, according to research

More businesses are choosing to locate themselves in city centres, with 76,000 more jobs being created since 1998, according to research from The Centre For Cities.

The think tank found that infrastructure, number of potential employees and proximity to other companies is attracting more businesses to cities.

Support

The study showed a boost in jobs in city centres, which has been driven by Britain’s growing services sector.

Despite making up just 9 per cent of land throughout the country, 59 per cent of jobs in the UK are city based, while rural areas were found to make up just 10 per cent of jobs, but comprise of more than half of land.

The company is now urging the Government to support urban areas and their growth, in order to boost Britain’s economic growth.

Centre For Cities Chief Executive Alexandra Jones said: "National leaders have come a long way in the past six years in recognising the diverse roles that different places, and cities in particular, can play in generating growth and contributing to the national economy.”

Strength

According to Employment Minister Damian Hinds, “The jobs market, including in our cities, is in a position of strength thanks to a record employment rate, and we're seeing around 740,000 vacancies at any one time.”

He stated that employment is on the up across the UK, with every region seeing an increase in the number of people in employment over the past year, adding “Our task now is to build on this success and support more people of all abilities and backgrounds into work so they can reap the benefits that come with having a job.”