Yorkshire is still thriving despite UK Powerhouse Study claims

In the recent UK Powerhouse Study from Irwin Mitchell, it was stated that while Sheffield and Leeds are expected to have the fastest growth in jobs across Yorkshire; the projected total level of employment is 472,200 in Leeds and 307,500 in Sheffield.

However, in contrast to this positive 1.2% combined growth, the report also shows that Yorkshire as a county is the slowest to grow. No city in the region made the top 10 in the report, meaning that the region is behind areas such as Stoke-on-Trent, Liverpool and Sunderland when it comes to headcount predictions. 

It has been reported that another city with high growth is Doncaster, which is projected the same growth in GVA as London (0.9%). Unfortunately, Wakefield, Hull and Bradford fall into the lower-part of the table in terms of projected employment growth.

While Yorkshire is shown to lag in the study, brought to our attention through a recent article on the Yorkshire Post’s website, Linear Recruitment’s Operation Director, Geoff Taylor, takes an alternative view on the report. 

Geoff has worked with Linear Recruitment since 2003, spending time across multiple offices in Leeds, Newcastle and Sheffield. Geoff has first-hand witnessed industry changes; from the perspective of construction, he offers another viewpoint:

“Despite the recent study that found that Yorkshire is lagging behind the rest of the UK in job recreation, there is more reason to be positive within the construction industry across the region in 2020.

“In the County’s major cities, Leeds and Sheffield, there are some notable high value schemes due to commence over the next 12 months. In Leeds, we will see the Monk Bridge Phase 1 Residential Development, Tower Works & Engine scheme, amongst a number of other commercial schemes due to commence.

“Looking at Sheffield, there is a £70 million Student Accommodation scheme in the City Centre, alongside another £50 million apartment block on Rockingham Street. 

“But it isn’t just Leeds and Sheffield that anticipate sizable projects to start, York City Centre will see the start of the York Central Regeneration Scheme. This will eventually consist of 2,500 homes, 900,000 sq ft of commercial space and 130,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space. 

“In Hull, work will commence on the £130 million Albion Square Retail Regeneration project, and in Knottingley, the construction of a new £50m Distribution centre will begin this year.

“Combine this with the vast array of Private Housing Developments, Social Housing schemes and Infrastructure projects that are already on site or due to start on site in 2020. Due to this, there is a large demand for staff across the board in the Yorkshire region.

“From Linear Recruitment’s perspective, despite the fact that we are currently in January, we are already actively recruiting for staff across blue and white collar roles. There is a particular focus on vacancies for Site Managers, Quantity Surveyors and Estimators. Although the market is still competitive, we still expect to see a continuing large demand for staff in 2020,” said Geoff.