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Inclusive Economy - Action Areas

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This section explains what is meant by each of our six action areas and why we have chosen them.

Employment and Skills

We want everyone in West Cheshire to have access to the education and skills they need to fulfil their potential and to have the opportunity to access high quality, well-paid jobs.

We want to work with our partners to break down barriers to reliable, fairly paid employment, ensure our residents have access to the right skills for the future, and ensure our businesses have access to capable, healthy employees. We hope to close gaps in employment opportunities and skills attainment, ensuring that everyone can play their part in a thriving economy.

Key information

Unemployment in west Cheshire is lower than the UK average, but around 23% of workers currently earn below the living wage. For certain groups, work pays less on average and is harder to find. There is a £3,000 gender pay gap (gross annual salary) between men and women in full time work. Among working age residents with disabilities only 62% are in employment. By one measure, Cheshire West and Chester is in the bottom 10% of local authority areas for youth social mobility.*

We have strong foundations to build on. Overall, academic achievement amongst our young people from early years upwards is good and in line with or above English averages; our working age population is more qualified than is typical across England; and far fewer young people are classed as not in education, employment or training. Our employment rate matches that in England and fewer people are unemployed. Our residents are generally in good health, have higher incomes and enjoy a good quality of life.


Building Better Places and Community Regeneration

We will work with communities to ensure our main centres and least affluent neighbourhoods are developed in a way that improves places and links people to opportunities.

We will work with residents to identify opportunities for regeneration, considering community projects and council-led developments. By designing services together, we can build stronger communities. We want to ensure every community is a pleasant place to live, has good local amenities, is well connected, and enjoys a positive identity with plenty of things to do.

Key information

Sixteen neighbourhoods in west Cheshire, home to 24,000 residents, rank in the 10% most deprived in England; two of these neighbourhoods are ranked in the 2% most deprived in England. The Covid-19 pandemic has served as a stark reminder that these places are disconnected from the quality of life and access to opportunity that the rest of the borough enjoys.*

West Cheshire is well equipped to meet our aims, possessing one of England’s finest historic cities, some of its most powerful and high value concentrations of industry, distinctive towns and attractive villages. 84% of residents are satisfied with west Cheshire as a place to live. We wish to level up our communities, connecting them to our plentiful assets and ensuring that no area is left behind.


Protecting the Environment and Green Spaces

We will respond to the climate emergency by supporting businesses to cut emissions, promote green skills and jobs, and enhancing access to green spaces and locally produced food.

We are committed to supporting west Cheshire to become carbon neutral by 2045. We hope to work across the public, private and voluntary sectors and with communities to moderate demand for energy and increase renewable energy generation – creating jobs in green industries and promoting the relevant skills.

We want to make the most of our green spaces to support the wellbeing of our residents and the health of our environment.

Key information

West Cheshire is the 5th highest greenhouse gas-emitting local authority area in England, producing four million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. The primary contributor to emissions within the Borough is industrial and institutional buildings, creating 53% of our emissions. The Ellesmere Port Industrial Area currently consumes approximately 5% of the UK’s energy for industrial processes, heat and transport. *

Local industry is already working with leading experts and the public sector to deliver change, through projects such as the HyNet low carbon and hydrogen energy project.

We are a rural borough with extensive ‘natural capital’ – including land, green spaces, trees and woodlands, wildlife and water. Maintaining our natural capital can support our flood defences and reduce our overall CO2 emissions.


Housing and Transport

We will continue to work towards good quality, affordable housing and improved public transport links. We will support health and environmental goals - for example through supporting walking and cycling, and insulating homes to tackle fuel poverty.

We wish to support growth in good quality local housing and seek an increase in affordable housing as part of that. We want very high environmental standards for all our social housing, carbon neutral where possible, and encourage private developers to do the same.

We want to ensure that our residents are not held back from education or employment opportunities by a lack of suitable transport. We want to facilitate low-carbon transport where possible.

Key information

Demand for housing in west Cheshire continues to outweigh supply. Homes are less affordable than is typical in the North West, the median house costs 7.3 times local median annual earnings, a figure which has grown over the last decade, compared to 5.8 times in the North West as a whole. However, houses are more affordable than is typical in England as a whole, median English house prices are 7.8 times median earnings.** More homes in west Cheshire are in a state of disrepair, compared to the national average, and this figure is increasing. 13% of homes in the Borough fail the repair requirement compared to 5.5% nationally. 11.3% of households in the Borough are living in fuel poverty.*

The quality of transport links across the borough is variable both within west Cheshire and from places within the borough to key centres outside. 19% of our CO2 emissions are from transport.*


Business Best Practice and Support

We will continue to support local businesses to thrive, encouraging residents to shop local and helping businesses with different ownership models get started and grow, all as part of an economy that creates and shares wealth and opportunity within our borough.

We want to create a culture of enterprise and entrepreneurship across all of our communities, including those from backgrounds and communities underrepresented as business owners. We hope to ensure that all support fully covers the needs of social enterprises.

We want all businesses to be the best that they can be – not only resilient, but thriving and growing, demonstrating that environmental good practice and being a good employer help the long-term bottom line.

Key Information

West Cheshire is home to both world leading major businesses, including in key sectors such as energy and advanced manufacturing, and a diverse range of small, locally based businesses, including new start-ups and independents. 87% of our workforce is employed by the private sector. More new businesses in West Cheshire survive for 5 years or longer (44%), than is typical across the UK (42%). However, fewer new businesses are created in west Cheshire each year than is typical across the UK. For every 100 business in west Cheshire, 11 were started in the last year, compared to 13 across the UK. Productivity growth has slowed over the last decade falling below the UK average, but productivity is still significantly higher than the North West average.*


Increasing local impact from Anchor Institutions

We will harness the influence of our major employers to support local people and strengthen local businesses, using their employment and buying power, the way they deliver services and use their assets to support community needs, and the way they take action on the climate emergency.

An anchor institution is a large organisation or business within the borough that is fixed in place, employs many people, spends substantial amounts of money, owns and manages land and assets, and often delivers crucial activities such as healthcare, education or public services. This includes the Council, Higher and Further Education institutions, rural estates and local health and care providers. The decisions anchors take about how they operate can amplify the contribution they make to our borough.

We want anchors to support the success of local SMEs and social enterprises by enabling them to bid for more contract opportunities. Doing so helps to build local wealth and enables enterprises to grow as money recirculates around the local economy rather than leaking out. We hope our anchors can derive more value from procurement by seeking contributions from suppliers towards local ambitions, including on training and good employment practice and carbon reduction.



*Data from Steer Economic Development, Inclusive Economy Evidence Base (2021)

** ONS, Ratio of house price to workplace-based earnings (lower quartile and median), 1997 to 2020 (2021), [https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/datasets/ratioofhousepricetoworkplacebasedearningslowerquartileandmedian]

This section explains what is meant by each of our six action areas and why we have chosen them.

Employment and Skills

We want everyone in West Cheshire to have access to the education and skills they need to fulfil their potential and to have the opportunity to access high quality, well-paid jobs.

We want to work with our partners to break down barriers to reliable, fairly paid employment, ensure our residents have access to the right skills for the future, and ensure our businesses have access to capable, healthy employees. We hope to close gaps in employment opportunities and skills attainment, ensuring that everyone can play their part in a thriving economy.

Key information

Unemployment in west Cheshire is lower than the UK average, but around 23% of workers currently earn below the living wage. For certain groups, work pays less on average and is harder to find. There is a £3,000 gender pay gap (gross annual salary) between men and women in full time work. Among working age residents with disabilities only 62% are in employment. By one measure, Cheshire West and Chester is in the bottom 10% of local authority areas for youth social mobility.*

We have strong foundations to build on. Overall, academic achievement amongst our young people from early years upwards is good and in line with or above English averages; our working age population is more qualified than is typical across England; and far fewer young people are classed as not in education, employment or training. Our employment rate matches that in England and fewer people are unemployed. Our residents are generally in good health, have higher incomes and enjoy a good quality of life.


Building Better Places and Community Regeneration

We will work with communities to ensure our main centres and least affluent neighbourhoods are developed in a way that improves places and links people to opportunities.

We will work with residents to identify opportunities for regeneration, considering community projects and council-led developments. By designing services together, we can build stronger communities. We want to ensure every community is a pleasant place to live, has good local amenities, is well connected, and enjoys a positive identity with plenty of things to do.

Key information

Sixteen neighbourhoods in west Cheshire, home to 24,000 residents, rank in the 10% most deprived in England; two of these neighbourhoods are ranked in the 2% most deprived in England. The Covid-19 pandemic has served as a stark reminder that these places are disconnected from the quality of life and access to opportunity that the rest of the borough enjoys.*

West Cheshire is well equipped to meet our aims, possessing one of England’s finest historic cities, some of its most powerful and high value concentrations of industry, distinctive towns and attractive villages. 84% of residents are satisfied with west Cheshire as a place to live. We wish to level up our communities, connecting them to our plentiful assets and ensuring that no area is left behind.


Protecting the Environment and Green Spaces

We will respond to the climate emergency by supporting businesses to cut emissions, promote green skills and jobs, and enhancing access to green spaces and locally produced food.

We are committed to supporting west Cheshire to become carbon neutral by 2045. We hope to work across the public, private and voluntary sectors and with communities to moderate demand for energy and increase renewable energy generation – creating jobs in green industries and promoting the relevant skills.

We want to make the most of our green spaces to support the wellbeing of our residents and the health of our environment.

Key information

West Cheshire is the 5th highest greenhouse gas-emitting local authority area in England, producing four million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. The primary contributor to emissions within the Borough is industrial and institutional buildings, creating 53% of our emissions. The Ellesmere Port Industrial Area currently consumes approximately 5% of the UK’s energy for industrial processes, heat and transport. *

Local industry is already working with leading experts and the public sector to deliver change, through projects such as the HyNet low carbon and hydrogen energy project.

We are a rural borough with extensive ‘natural capital’ – including land, green spaces, trees and woodlands, wildlife and water. Maintaining our natural capital can support our flood defences and reduce our overall CO2 emissions.


Housing and Transport

We will continue to work towards good quality, affordable housing and improved public transport links. We will support health and environmental goals - for example through supporting walking and cycling, and insulating homes to tackle fuel poverty.

We wish to support growth in good quality local housing and seek an increase in affordable housing as part of that. We want very high environmental standards for all our social housing, carbon neutral where possible, and encourage private developers to do the same.

We want to ensure that our residents are not held back from education or employment opportunities by a lack of suitable transport. We want to facilitate low-carbon transport where possible.

Key information

Demand for housing in west Cheshire continues to outweigh supply. Homes are less affordable than is typical in the North West, the median house costs 7.3 times local median annual earnings, a figure which has grown over the last decade, compared to 5.8 times in the North West as a whole. However, houses are more affordable than is typical in England as a whole, median English house prices are 7.8 times median earnings.** More homes in west Cheshire are in a state of disrepair, compared to the national average, and this figure is increasing. 13% of homes in the Borough fail the repair requirement compared to 5.5% nationally. 11.3% of households in the Borough are living in fuel poverty.*

The quality of transport links across the borough is variable both within west Cheshire and from places within the borough to key centres outside. 19% of our CO2 emissions are from transport.*


Business Best Practice and Support

We will continue to support local businesses to thrive, encouraging residents to shop local and helping businesses with different ownership models get started and grow, all as part of an economy that creates and shares wealth and opportunity within our borough.

We want to create a culture of enterprise and entrepreneurship across all of our communities, including those from backgrounds and communities underrepresented as business owners. We hope to ensure that all support fully covers the needs of social enterprises.

We want all businesses to be the best that they can be – not only resilient, but thriving and growing, demonstrating that environmental good practice and being a good employer help the long-term bottom line.

Key Information

West Cheshire is home to both world leading major businesses, including in key sectors such as energy and advanced manufacturing, and a diverse range of small, locally based businesses, including new start-ups and independents. 87% of our workforce is employed by the private sector. More new businesses in West Cheshire survive for 5 years or longer (44%), than is typical across the UK (42%). However, fewer new businesses are created in west Cheshire each year than is typical across the UK. For every 100 business in west Cheshire, 11 were started in the last year, compared to 13 across the UK. Productivity growth has slowed over the last decade falling below the UK average, but productivity is still significantly higher than the North West average.*


Increasing local impact from Anchor Institutions

We will harness the influence of our major employers to support local people and strengthen local businesses, using their employment and buying power, the way they deliver services and use their assets to support community needs, and the way they take action on the climate emergency.

An anchor institution is a large organisation or business within the borough that is fixed in place, employs many people, spends substantial amounts of money, owns and manages land and assets, and often delivers crucial activities such as healthcare, education or public services. This includes the Council, Higher and Further Education institutions, rural estates and local health and care providers. The decisions anchors take about how they operate can amplify the contribution they make to our borough.

We want anchors to support the success of local SMEs and social enterprises by enabling them to bid for more contract opportunities. Doing so helps to build local wealth and enables enterprises to grow as money recirculates around the local economy rather than leaking out. We hope our anchors can derive more value from procurement by seeking contributions from suppliers towards local ambitions, including on training and good employment practice and carbon reduction.



*Data from Steer Economic Development, Inclusive Economy Evidence Base (2021)

** ONS, Ratio of house price to workplace-based earnings (lower quartile and median), 1997 to 2020 (2021), [https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/datasets/ratioofhousepricetoworkplacebasedearningslowerquartileandmedian]