Manchester sees biggest rise in living standards in boost for Burnham

Manchester has seen the biggest rise in inner city living standards in the UK since 2010, providing support for Andy Burnham as he seeks a return to parliament.

Analysis by independent think tank Center for Cities found Manchester would reduce its share of inner-city poor neighborhoods by 17 per cent from 2010 to 2025.

Nationally, the proportion of all city center neighborhoods in the 20 per cent most disadvantaged areas fell by 7 percentage points from 38 per cent to 31 per cent, driven largely by Manchester, Liverpool and London.

In Manchester, 58.4 per cent of neighborhoods in and around the city center were among the poorest in 2025, up from 75.7 per cent in 2010 (a drop of 17.3 percentage points).

It is welcome news for Andy Burnham as the mayor of Greater Manchester hopes to return to Westminster in the Makerfield by-election. If elected, he is expected to challenge Sir Keir Starmer for the Labor leadership through a style of politics he calls “Manchesterism”.

Mr Burnham became the combined authority’s first elected mayor in 2017 and the years since have coincided with significant change in central Manchester, where its skyline is now dotted with skyscrapers and residential towers.

Greater Manchester has also become the fastest growing region in the UK economy over the last decade, with annual economic growth of 3.1 per cent; This is more than double the country’s overall growth rate.

Explaining his political views in a by-election campaign video, Mr Burnham said: “Manchesterism is the end of neoliberalism, the end of trickle-down economics that leaves out places like Makerfield. Make no mistake, this means a new way for Britain.”

In a tweet following his election, he pledged a “relentless focus on reducing people’s everyday costs” and said “more than anything, people need life to become more affordable again.”

The Center for Cities report, ‘Unequal Cities: The Geography of Poverty in Urban Britain’, shows that the share of poor inner-city neighborhoods across the country has fallen significantly since 2010.

The think tank said this was due to changes in major cities such as Manchester, Liverpool and London, despite continued urban deprivation elsewhere.

Other major cities, including Birmingham (-3.7 percentage points) and Bristol (-2.3 percentage points), have seen declines in the share of inner-city neighborhoods ranked among the UK’s poorest.

Liverpool has seen the largest overall decline in deprivation of any city in the UK.

Across the city’s entire urban area, 53.7 per cent of neighborhoods were among the UK’s most disadvantaged in 2025, down 10.6 percentage points from 64.4 per cent in 2010.

Inner city Liverpool also saw a 12.2 per cent drop in deprivation.

London has made the largest overall contribution to reducing inner city deprivation, partly due to the scale of the capital.

The share of inner London neighborhoods among the poorest in the UK has fallen by 14 percentage points from 36.1 per cent to 22.1 per cent by 2025.

But rates have risen in urban Britain and deprivation remains concentrated in cities.

Seven of the ten cities and towns with the biggest increases in deprivation rates across their entire urban area were in the North or Midlands, including Derby (+10.3 points) and Sunderland (+8.7).

Nearly two-thirds of the UK’s poorest neighborhoods are in urban areas. There was little change in rates in most cities and large towns.

That’s why the Center for Cities said the better figures in major cities were evidence that mayors such as Sadiq Khan, Mr Burnham and Steve Rotheram should be supported to expand access to jobs and reduce poverty, and praised their work to “champion” their local economies.

Andrew Carter, chief executive of the Center for Cities, said: “The changes in Manchester, Liverpool and London are remarkable at a national level and show that a major cities-focused approach is a reliable way to improve living standards across the UK.

“Deprivation continues or is rising slightly in most major towns and cities, underlining how much we have to learn from developments in Liverpool, Manchester and London.

“The challenge now is to build on the progress made since 2010. England’s major cities now have metropolitan mayors with the power to champion their local economies, extend public transport connectivity to central areas and build homes in well-connected locations, expanding access to good jobs and opportunities across their areas and delivering the change people are feeling.

“The government needs to continue supporting mayors to deliver and guarantee fiscal devolution plans that will reward metropolitan mayors for the steps they take to boost local growth.”