This is the 100th edition of the Monitor! The first one was published in late March 2020. At that time, PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) had dropped to 37.1, 1 in 3 businesses had closed due to regulation, Jaguar Land Rover had shut its production plants, and the numbers of calls for business support were increasing … Continue reading “West Midlands Impact Monitor – 6 April 2023”
The Energy Price Cap and Price Guarantee: What Does it Mean for Your Energy Bill?
Dr Annum Rafique looks at how you can save on your energy bills, what support is available and what to look for looking ahead into the future. The energy price cap sets a maximum price that energy suppliers can charge consumers for each kilowatt hour (kWh) of energy they use. The price cap is for … Continue reading “The Energy Price Cap and Price Guarantee: What Does it Mean for Your Energy Bill?”
Red Flag and Data City: A Comparison
Reen Blake-Carr looks at two companies providing economic and business data and assesses their similarities and differences. With thanks to Charlie Hopkirk, Black Country Consortium for his input into the development of this blog. What is Red Flag Alert? Red Flag Alert is a company that was founded in 2004 to help identify new business … Continue reading “Red Flag and Data City: A Comparison”
City-REDI/WMREDI Round Up – March 2023
Events – presenting work / speaking engagements On Monday 6th March WMREDI hosted The 3rd Expert Roundtable on ‘Empowering Innovation through Public Procurement’. This event, co-organised with the University of Manchester and the Connected Places Catapult (CPC), launched the Innovation Procurement Empowerment Centre (IPEC), with speakers from the Cabinet Office, DSIT and Innovate UK. On … Continue reading “City-REDI/WMREDI Round Up – March 2023”
Carbon Emission Accounting of Cities
On 2nd March 2023, City-REDI held their second hybrid seminar with Zhifu Mi, Professor of Climate Change Economics, UCL. Watch the seminar below. Cities are at the forefront of the battle against climate change. However, intercity comparisons and responsibility allocations among cities are hindered because cost- and time-effective methods to calculate the carbon footprints of … Continue reading “Carbon Emission Accounting of Cities”
The Nexus of Innovation
Simon Collinson, Fengjie Pan and Pei-Yu Yuan examine Research and Development (R&D) funding in the UK. Does it create equal regional growth across the country? This blog post was produced for inclusion in the Birmingham Economic Review for 2022. The annual Birmingham Economic Review is produced by the University of Birmingham’s City-REDI and the Greater … Continue reading “The Nexus of Innovation”
Smart Energy – An Energy System for the 21st Century
What is smart energy? Annum Rafique discusses what it is, how it works and its potential to help us achieve net-zero. This blog was first published on the College of Social Science blog. Smart Energy has been identified as an energy system for the 21st Century which utilises digital technologies to monitor energy needs, make … Continue reading “Smart Energy – An Energy System for the 21st Century”
“I Blame the Green Book”- Why has Guidance Become the Scape Goat of Public Funding Decisions like Levelling Up?
Rebecca Riley outlines some of the misconceptions around the use of the Green Book. As part of the Y-PERN conference held recently, I had a slot on a session about the Green Book, partly because I chair the Green Book User Network Steering Group, but also because City-REDI does a lot of work helping partners … Continue reading ““I Blame the Green Book”- Why has Guidance Become the Scape Goat of Public Funding Decisions like Levelling Up?”
Supporting Digitalisation in Birmingham’s Professional Business Financial Service Sector
A new report, in collaboration with The Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership, evaluates a pilot programme utilizing the ‘No Code’ approach to developing apps for businesses in the West Midlands as well as teaching young people digital skills. The Business Professional Financial Services (BPFS) sector is the largest sector by turnover, employment, and … Continue reading “Supporting Digitalisation in Birmingham’s Professional Business Financial Service Sector”
The Spring Budget 2023: What Does it Mean for the West Midlands?
On 15th March, the government released its Spring Budget. Alice Pugh and Maryna Ramcharan examine the budget’s impact on the West Midlands. The key announcements from the budget and initial analysis can be seen here. This budget is the first budget since the turmoil of the autumn ‘mini budget’ 2022 and the second autumn budget … Continue reading “The Spring Budget 2023: What Does it Mean for the West Midlands?”