A new report has said Bristol is one of the best-placed cities in the UK to lead the country out of recession.
The latest survey by the Centre for Cities showed that , other than London and the South East, Bristol was shown to have relatively low unemployment and a stable economy – due to a significant number of people working in the finance sector. It has also seen more new houses built and more babies born than most other cities in the country.
The study unveiled Bristol as one of the fastest growing cities in the UK, along with York, Oxford and Swindon. Bristol’s employment rate is 14 points above Birmingham and was one of two cities (the other being Edinburgh) to have employment rates above the national average, according to the report.
Bristol appears in the top ten for the first time and significantly improved its performance compared to other major cities in the UK.
A OnePoll survey, released in 2009, revealed Bristol as the best place to live in England. It followed a survey of 5,000 people which looked at a range of factors, including quality of life, friendliness and pay. The other cities in the top five were Brighton, Oxford, Plymouth and Cambridge.
Speaking at the time of the poll, Bristol City Council leader, Barbara Janke, said: “Bristol is a relatively small city compared to London, which could mean it still has a community feel, something you would be hard pushed to find elsewhere. Residents have what they need at their fingertips – a bustling, varied city centre, a great night life and friendly people.”
A 2010 study also named Bristol as one of the top 10 places to retire to. The research, revealed in Yours magazine, looked at a number of factors, from amenities to crime rates and public transport to scenery to come up with the best places for pensioners to settle. It was joined in the upper echelons by Sheffield, Southampton and Worthing, nr Brighton.
Love Bristol? See what the council has to say here. Or the University of Bristol, here. Or Medics on the Move here.
So, you don't agree with the survey then, bramblejam?
I've hated it here for a good long while now & if it was up to me we'd be long gone. What we'd remember would be a city like a bombsite, tiny fragments of a prettier older town, absolutely no decent modern architecture at all.
And all that gridlock and pollution. When I first moved here I thought you'd all evolved to breathe the stuff.
Then there'd be the council we first thought must be corrupt then realised were incompetents held in place by an insane electoral system. Then there'd be the SFB's (surly Bristolians), all looking as if they're sucking the stumps of their teeth and saying "we like it like this, we don't want change". So many passive-aggressive people all in one place ….
Best city for jobs? Maybe if you're a MV or something, but if you honestly want the job you're the best person for you have to fight your way through crowds of people desperate to give the job to their halfwit cousin.
Vile place. Now bring on the passive-aggressive comments from the fume-breathing inbred EP commentariat and their huge extended families
But then if you listen to others it's a congested hell hole of traffic full of intrusive advertising……..
This can't be right.
All the stadium fans keep saying we are the laughing stock of Britain, with Coventry, Nottingham and Telford all storming ahead of us.