Socio-economic context
Introduction
Perfectly placed between the core cities of Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield, Kirklees is an exceptional business location with strong connections to the UK's strategic road and rail network offering ready access to international airports and seaports.
Part of West Yorkshire, Kirklees is strategically located at the heart of the UK and the centre of the Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield City Region triangle - a pivotal central location within the UK's £339 billion Northern Powerhouse.
Excellent transport networks include:
- Easy access to the M62, M1 and A1.
- Direct rail links to Manchester and Leeds in 30 minutes, through to London in 2 hours.
- Manchester and Leeds Bradford Airports within 45 minutes, and a direct train to Manchester Airport.
- Seaports at Liverpool, Hull, Immingham and Teesport within 2 hours.
Part of West Yorkshire, Kirklees is strategically located at the heart of the UK and the centre of the Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield city region triangle - a pivotal central location within the UK's £339 billion Northern Powerhouse.
An integral part of Kirklees' £8.35 billion GVA economy, 15,000 local businesses benefit from:
Commercial property rents up to 15% cheaper than competitor destinations.
Grade A office space costing up to c63% less than nearby cities.
Potential incentives to support delivery of employment space.
Fast access to world-leading research and innovation centres.
Affordable gigabit-speed internet services across 91% of the district.
A highly developed sector supply chain and easy access to exporting.
Access to 7 million consumers within one-hour's travel.
Dedicated business support via Business Kirklees.
A skilled local workforce, with significant labour-saving costs.
A beautiful, vibrant place to live and work.
Our diverse network of larger towns - Huddersfield and Dewsbury - and local centres (like Batley, Cleckheaton, Heckmondwike, Holmfirth and Marsden) - are evolving as centres for shopping, leisure and community activity and offer a wide range of housing with easy access to beautiful surroundings, including part of the majestic Peak District National Park which lies within the Kirklees boundary.
Connectivity within Kirklees and to the core cities beyond is being transformed through unprecedented levels of public investment in infrastructure projects like the TransPennine Route Upgrade, reducing journey times between Leeds and Manchester from over an hour to just 40 minutes.
Alongside planned improvements to the Penistone Line connecting Huddersfield with Sheffield, these investments will increase access to job opportunities and widen the talent pool for local businesses. Bus franchising also offers significant opportunities to connect more people with jobs and learning. In the long-term, the regional Mass Transit programme aims to improve connectivity between Leeds and Dewsbury. We also need continued improvements to our strategic road network, and to build on our active travel infrastructure to deliver a cohesive network that offers a safe and viable alternative to car use for short journeys.
Despite these improvements, we have yet to realise our full economic potential. This section of the inclusive economy strategy sets out some of the opportunities and challenges that will need to be addressed over the next five years.
