Inventing our future Collective action for a sustainable economy

What do we need to change?
The spatial response
Milton Keynes South Midlands
growth area
99
• a young and diverse population profile, and a vibrant cultural offer
including Luton Carnival and the UK Centre for Carnival Arts
• proximity to Milton Keynes, as a major employment centre and growth
locality that will grow to near core city scale by the end of the regional
economic strategy period
• location at the heart of the Oxford2Cambridge Arc increasing
opportunities for inward investment, innovation and technology transfer.
Constraints
• compared to the rest of the region, there are lower rates of business
start-up
• meeting the demand in supply of affordable housing completions
• poor East/West transport links, eg rail links with the Midland and
East Coast main lines
• traffic congestion, particularly on the main routes between and
within urban centres, and the need for improved connection between
the local and national network
• in Luton and South Bedfordshire just under 23 per cent of the
working-age population have level 4 qualifications, well below regional
and national levels. In line with this, more of our people have no
qualifications, 17 per cent compared to 14 per cent in the region
and England
• persistent pockets of deprivation, particularly concentrated in the
urban areas of Luton and Bedford.
Strategic ambitions
• significantly raise entrepreneurship, employment and skills rates – and,
in particular, to narrow the gaps between disadvantaged communities
and the average
• enable continued growth of Luton as a regional city and reinvent town
centres in Bedford and Dunstable
• promote business growth and innovation through high-quality physical
developments combined with a complimentary business support offer,
such as Butterfield Park and Capability Green in Luton, Priory Business
Park and the i-lab in Bedford
• develop a next-generation science park at Colworth, anchored by
Unilever, with a thriving business community collaborating with both
private sector and university R&D expertise
• realise the role of Cranfield University as a major driver of the local and
regional economy, through a sustained programme of investment in
applied research, ensuring access of local and regional entrepreneurs to
leading management expertise and further developing the Technology
and Air Parks as preferred locations for local and multi-national
businesses seeking academic partnerships
• continue to grow the University of Bedfordshire's contribution to
higher-level skills in the local economy and extend the knowledge hub
offer, supporting business start-up and growth and applied research
• ensure delivery of high-quality and mixed housing supply, with a major
focus on sustainable urban extensions
• ensure enhanced environmental assets to provide a network of green
infrastructure of national importance (eg Forest of Marston Vale, the
Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty)
• improve rail and public transport in the sub-region and connections to
the national road network (eg M1).