Oxford voted top city in UK while Bradford is most improved

Oxford and Reading have been voted the top cities in the UK, while the crown for most improved has gone to Bradford.

The two cities in southern England have ranked in the top two for four years running, mainly due its jobs and health and transport infrastructure, a study said.

Oxford took the top spot this year thanks to benefits such as work-life balance, income, transport and skills.

Reading, while second, faced a slight dip in its score which was driven by lower house price to earnings ratios, income inequality and a fall in new businesses created.

Analysts warned it could be suffering the "price of success". They explained the side-effect of achievement is often rising house prices and overstretched transport systems which could ultimately hold areas back.

Meanwhile, Bradford, in west Yorkshire, has been going through an economic revival in recent years.

Although it suffered a post-war slump that impacted on the decades that followed, the city appears to be on the rise again, according to the study by PwC and Demos.

The city, famed for its superb curry offerings, has seen its unemployment rate plummet from 10 per cent in 2015 to 4.1 per cent in 2018.

Its jobs, work-life balance and skills among its residents aged 25 and over are a driving force behind Bradford's improvement.

The Growth for Cities report by the PwC and Demos think-tank is an alternative to measuring economic well-being through GDP only.

Instead, the analysts rank 42 cities by how well they perform in 10 categories deemed most important to the public.

These include jobs, health, income and skills, as well as work-life balance, house-affordability, travel-to-work times, income equality, environment and business start-ups.

PwC partner and local government leader Jonathan House said: “In an era of political, technological and environmental disruption, cities and regions that want to get ahead, need to do things differently.

"Even with the uncertainty of Brexit, over the last year, local leaders have had significant success in delivering good growth in their cities and regions.

"Our research shows the need to take a comprehensive approach to growth, focusing on improving productivity to compete on a global stage, but also on ensuring fairness and inclusive growth so that people and places don’t feel left behind."

London ranked in the top 20 of highest performing cities but the index showed it is not a consistent performer.

The capital performs particularly well in areas such as new businesses per head, income and skills, yet falls down on house prices to earnings, owner occupation and transport.

The overall long-term data for the UK shows skills among the population aged 16 to 64 and the number of new businesses created have shown the largest improvements, although housing affordability and owner occupation has deteriorated, alongside rising commuting times.

Read more

Who needs Venice when Oxford is on our doorstep?