Preston retains place as best place to live and work in the North West

Skyline of Preston catches a golden glow Pic: Paul Melling

The Demos-PWC Good Growth for Cities Index has named Preston the best city to live and work in the North West.

Preston remains the highest performing city in the North West for the second time, and has scored above average across a number of important categories.

They include availability of jobs, a positive work-life balance, the skills of the population and variety of roles on offer.

Preston has also been recognised for its resilience to the continued Covid-19 pandemic, with a lower proportion of employees in the city being furloughed as part of the UK Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CRJS) in comparison to other cities in the region.

Preston ranked 16th overall in the 2021 Good Growth for Cities index, which measures the performance of 42 UK cities against 10 categories including jobs, income, work-life balance, transport, skills, environment and the house price to earnings ratio.

Leader of Preston City Council, Councillor Matthew Brown, said: “I am delighted that Preston has maintained its position as the best city to live and work in the North West.

“This report also shows that our city has pulled together to endure the pandemic and gives me great optimism that we will be in a strong position to recover and grow.

“This success links closely to the significant improvement on our local economy we continuously strive for through the Preston Model and our Community Wealth Building Agenda.

“Underpinning our support for the economic and social well-being of all Prestonians by building a richer and more democratic economy in Preston. I am particularly pleased to see above average improvements in income inequality, jobs, environment, work life balance and housing affordability.

“Our city has enjoyed a remarkable story of growth and innovation and I look forward to that continuing once we emerge from this pandemic.”

Mark Whittle, Preston City Centre BID, said:

“We’re proud to see Preston once again featuring in the list of the ‘best places to live and work in the UK’, being number one in the North West.

“This is sheer testament to the strong and resilient private sector business community who have, and continue, to show resilience and determination during what has been one of the most challenging years in modern times.

“We’re optimistic that Preston will recover well from the effects of the pandemic, as evidenced in our mid-term recovery following the first lockdown in 2020, when we stood ahead of many major cities.

“We send our thanks to every business, individual, and organisation, that continues to make Preston a great place in which to live, work, visit and invest.”

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