State of the North 2020/21: Power up, level up, rise up

Article

Last year’s State of the North report revealed the extent of the UK’s deep regional divides. This year, we consider what this means for people in the North, asking who is most impacted by these pre-existing divides, and by policies that seek to change them.

Covid-19 has thrown our long-term inequities and lack of resilience into a stark spotlight. A recovery that simply restores the old order would be unsustainable and – for many – unacceptable.

In this report we set out some of the ways in which the North’s economy does not, currently, create the conditions for a good life for everyone in the region – and how a truly ‘levelled up’ North might look.

In an extraordinary year, as we experience a global pandemic and approach Brexit, we propose a series of ‘tests’ to help define ‘levelling up’ and increase accountability for initiatives that seek to rebalance – or ‘level up’ – the regions of England and the UK.

Related items

  1. An older man with a walking stick is sitting on a sofa having his temperature taken with a thermometer in his ear by a female nurse in uniform

    This time must be different: Overcoming barriers to social care reform

    Adult social care services across England are struggling to keep up with increased demand, let alone improve. But failure is not an option.
  2. Queen Square Bus Station on Hood Street in Liverpool city centre

    En route to renewal: Delivering better, greener buses

    Good buses drive a strong economy, healthy environment and thriving society. 
  3. Townhouses beside the railway on the viaduct with a running train in Durham, UK

    On track to prosperity: Great Northern Rail

    It’s time the North saw real change for better transport, delivering prosperity and better lives: a long-term plan for Great Northern Rail