Towns and Urban Centres will be at the heart of our recovery as the country transitions from the shadows of the pandemic over the coming years.

If we want cities and towns across the country to drive an inclusive recovery and growth, then we must listen directly to those who run and represent those places, are close to the lived experience of their residents and acutely aware of the obstacles, as well as the opportunities, for progress.

Our report on The Future of Urban Centres Post Covid, commissioned jointly with Core Cities, brought forward several detailed recommendations based on evidence from economic and stakeholder analysis.

Among which was the urgent need for our towns and urban centres to create new partnership-based governance with citizens, businesses, anchor institutions and investors, supported by a new inclusive renewal deal aimed at driving investment in innovation, housing retrofit, green industry and jobs and social infrastructure.

Our most recent report The Healthy City, also sets out a new vision for cities in 2050 based on a ‘health first principle’, – making the case for cities and Government to increase support and promotion of mental, physical and social health at both the local and national level.

If Covid-19 has taught us anything, it is that going back to the way things were is not an option. Only new, locally led solutions will work in a world changed forever by the pandemic.