City of York Council’s Quarterly Economic Update has highlighted a positive trend in the ongoing recovery across the city since October 2021.
Despite national economic challenges, business activity and consumer demand continues to be strong in York, with the city centre attracting 2.1m visitors between October and December. The Centre for Cities’ high streets recovery tracker shows that up till the end of November, York’s footfall index and spend index was the second and third highest of any city and large town in the UK.
The report also highlights that York’s economy is expected to continue to grow. Oxford Economics’ latest forecast suggests that York’s economy was one of the best performing in 2021, with its gross value added (GVA) estimated to have grown 9.8% year-on-year, with a further 6% growth expected in 2022.
The Council has continued to support businesses across the City during this period. In November, the Business Growth Voucher Scheme was launched, which allows local businesses to access up to £1,000 of expertise and support from other businesses across the city – not only helping those in receipt of the vouchers, but also generating income for other local businesses. The scheme has been a success, with 550 small and micro businesses applying for the scheme and over 140 York-based businesses being approved as suppliers.
York Business Week was also held to support ongoing recovery efforts. During the week over 600 delegates attended 35 events exploring current business aims and opportunities for growth.
Whilst the Omicron variant posed challenges to the business community as 2021 drew to a close, following local lobbying efforts, the Council now stands ready to offer additional financial support provided by the Government to support businesses impacted by the latest outbreak. The Council has launched the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant and is preparing to launch another round of its Additional Restrictions Grants.
Collaborative work continues with the city’s rail sector as efforts to attract Great British Rail to York progresses, and interest in York as a place to do business remains high both in terms of businesses looking to locate to the city, and existing business looking to grow and expand locally.
Councillor Andrew Waller, Executive Member for Economy and Strategic Planning, said: “The overall positive picture of a strong recovery in York is a testament to the incredible resilience of local businesses and the work carried out by the council and key partners across the city.
“Whilst these positive trends are very encouraging and confirm the effectiveness of the work carried out in the past two years, this remains an uneasy and challenging time for many local businesses. That is why we are continuing in our efforts to provide support, opportunities and timely information to businesses across the city.”
