Role and purpose - Economic Growth Steering Board

Oxford is not only one of the UK’s fastest growing cities, it is a global success story, competing among the top technology clusters in the world by being a world leading technology cluster. The city is home to a diverse industrial base with around 5,300 businesses providing 133,000 jobs.

The city is home to two world class universities, and one of the best qualified populations in the country, with the highest concentration of knowledge workers.

Over the last six years, the city has experienced a growth of 19.31% in private sector jobs, one of the fastest outside London. Unemployment has been under 1% for a significant length of time. Oxford’s Gross Value Added per worker is the seventh highest of UK cities. The city also attracts significant inward investment (FDI).

A tourism gateway to the rest of Oxfordshire, the city annually attracts approximately 7 million day time and staying visitors generating £780 million of income for local Oxford businesses. In terms of overseas visitors to the UK, Oxford is the seventh most visited city for staying visits.

Key Facts About Oxford and the Local Economy from the Fast Growth Cities Report published by the Centre for Cities in 2016 and 2021:

• Oxford has one of the highest Gross Value Added (GVA) city in the country, generating £58,150 per worker in 2014. However, productivity has stagnated in recent years.
• Oxford contributes to the country’s economy, generating high levels of economy tax per worker and consuming low levels of Government expenditure. In 2014-15 Oxford generated around twice as much in economy taxes as is paid out to them in Government expenditure.
• One reason Oxford generates such large economy taxes is its high employment rate. Oxford had a rise of 5.9 percentage points between 2010-15, being so the sixth fastest rate of growth out of any UK city.
• During the pandemic, Oxford had one of the lowest share of people on furlough and claiming unemployment benefits, largely due its concentration of managerial and research jobs.
• From 2014 to 2018 Oxford employment rose by 6.5 percentage points, significantly higher than the national average of 3.8 percentage points. In 2018, Oxford’s employment rate was 82.4%, compared to the national average of 75.5%.
• Oxford perform extremely well regarding people’s qualifications. Over half of Oxford’s population had a degree-level qualifications in 2018, and less than 6% had no qualifications.
• In 2018, Oxford had a lower share of job in private KIBS (knowledge intensive business services) and exporting businesses, compared to the national average. However, this is offset by the substantial local higher education sector.
• Oxford boasts a mature innovation system, ranking third among UK cities for patent application.
• Oxford is a popular tourist destination, with over 80% of weekend visitors to the city centre coming from outside the city. However, this reliance on tourism led to a slower economic recovery during the pandemic.
• Oxford excels in sustainable travel options, with over four times as many people commute by bike and almost three times as many commuting in bus, minibus or coach compared to the national average.
• Oxford faces significant challenges with housing stock and affordability. Alongside Cambridge, it has the highest house prices among all Fast Growth Cities. The Oxford City Council, in partnership with other local authorities has plans for housing investment in the coming years.

The OSP has agreed and adopted The Oxford Economic Strategy and Delivery Plan. It seeks to:

• establish a shared narrative on the future direction of the Oxford economy; and
• define clear strategic priorities, objectives and actions for delivering and managing economic growth in Oxford over the next ten years.

The Oxford Economic Strategy and Delivery Plan (2022-32) seeks to establish a new standard for economic inclusion in the city. This will be underpinned by the strength of an impactful global city economy, evolving in a way which recognises environmental limits and harnesses the opportunity of a new zero carbon economy.

Download the Oxford Economic Strategy and Delivery Plan.