A study by the Centre for Cities thinktank has found that disposable incomes in 11 English towns and cities rose twice as fast as the rest of the UK over the past decade. Between 2013 and 2023, residents in these top-performing areas saw an average increase of 5.2%, compared with 2.4% for urban areas overall.
The report highlights Warrington, Barnsley, and Wakefield among the top performers. It notes that if all 63 of the UK's largest towns and cities had matched this growth, people would have gained an extra £3,200 on average. The success is attributed to a strong local business base and higher-skilled jobs in tradeable industries such as software, marketing, and finance.
Andrew Carter, chief executive of Centre for Cities, said the top performers focus on increasing cutting-edge jobs and are deliberate in their approach. For example, Barnsley used its M1 corridor location to become a logistics hub, adding 6,000 private service jobs since 2015, a third of which are high-skilled. Warrington saw the highest total economic growth at 41% and is the only northern town with workplace wages above the UK average.
The report criticises government policies that tinker with symptoms like bus fares or energy bills rather than driving economic growth. It warns that without addressing the lack of growth, cost-of-living pressures and stagnant incomes will persist. Brighton had the highest disposable income rise at 8.1%, followed by Worthing at 7.8% and London at 5.8%.
In contrast, Cambridge saw a 3% decline in real-terms disposable income, with residents spending 17% of outgoings on housing. Outside England, Cardiff had the highest rise at 1.4%, while Glasgow and Belfast saw declines of 2.3% and 1.5% respectively.
