Birmingham
The UK’s most investable city
Birmingham is a leading European business destination at the centre of a £90bn regional economy. The City has access to a working population of 4.3 million people, provides a wealth of opportunities for companies looking to expand or invest and offers a high quality of life.
A cosmopolitan and vibrant modern city with a cost of living 60% lower than London and a diverse housing offer to suit all tastes and budgets. The City is one of Britain’s greenest with more than one fifth of its area consisting of parks, nature reserves, allotments, golf courses and playing fields – many of these are linked by rivers, watercourses and canals.
Living in Birmingham
Living in the highest ranking English regional city according to the Mercer Quality of Life Index (2012, for the second year running), being in or on the doorstep of a top 20 international destination to visit (Source: New York Times) and always having space to relax and breathe (600 parks and one of the largest urban parks in Europe) – all combine to make setting up home in the region make complete sense. As well as the above, consider the following:
- High standards and low prices make Birmingham’s housing great value
- The Land Registry states that house prices in Birmingham are 36% less than the national average
Birmingham Universities
There are many universities and three University Colleges within one hour’s drive of Birmingham, producing over 97,000 graduates each year. This makes the city-region the second largest student area in the UK.
Birmingham itself has five universities; Aston University, Birmingham City University, Birmingham University, University College Birmingham and Newman University. Aston University and Birmingham University achieve higher than the UK average for 2:1 or 1st class degrees and Aston has the highest employability scoring of all regional UK cities – 82% get jobs within six months of graduation. The region includes three Russell Group Universities, namely, Birmingham University, University of Warwick and University of Nottingham.
Birmingham is a business hub
Birmingham is perfectly placed for business – with exceptional connections to local, national and global audiences. It is at the heart of the UK’s road network and boasts its own international airport with direct flights to over 100 destinations including in Europe, North America and Asia.
Its role as an economic hub is reflected in its status as one of the UK’s largest financial centres outside London and attraction as a location for business and professional services with a significant number of regional and national HQs. The diversity of the centre’s economic role is supported by its reputation as a hub for creative industries and as the UK’s fastest growing place for digital media ventures.
10 Reasons to Invest in Birmingham
- Birmingham is the “Most Investable City in the UK” according to PwC and the Urban Land Institute.
- UK’s fastest growing city. A £94 billion regional economy making the city a major engine of UK growth outside of London. It receives more Foreign Direct Investment than any other region and named Start-Up Hotspot for second year running.
- With £2.43 billion expenditure in 2010, Birmingham remains in the top three most popular places to shop in the UK for the seventh year running.
- Air, road and rail connections provide Access to 400 million people across Europe. With 143 direct connections from Birmingham Airport. Over 98% of the UK market – consumer and business – are within a 4-hour travel time.
- Strongest growth in international tourism: “Shakespeare Country”. The city saw 34 million tourists in 2014, an increase of 32%, who spent a record £5 billion. Birmingham is the most visited English city outside London for European visitors.
- The City’s 5 universities and 4 major colleges provide a world class learning environment supporting over 73,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students.
- The City has a young population profile with nearly 40% under 24 years of age and a total population of over 1 million citizens. It’s the most entrepreneurial UK city outside London.
- There are more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other English regional city with 200 restaurants in the centre offering cuisine from 27 different countries.
- It may have been built on the back of heavy industry but it is also one of the greenest cities in the country with 6 million trees and more parks than any other European city. With 32 miles of canals, Birmingham has more than Venice.
- Top destination outside the South East for people relocating out of London and the most popular conference and event location.
