The announcement that Liverpool City Region is becoming a Marmot City Region is a significant milestone for our area and a powerful statement about the kind of future we want to create.

At its heart, the Marmot approach recognises something that many of us have known for a long time: health is shaped by far more than healthcare alone.

Where you live, the quality of your housing, access to education, employment opportunities, transport connections, leisure amenities and the strength of your local community all play a vital role in determining how long and how well you live.

That is why I warmly welcome Mayor Steve Rotheram and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s commitment to embedding the Marmot principles across its work.

By putting health at the heart of decisions on transport, housing, skills, regeneration and economic development we have an opportunity to tackle inequalities at their root and improve the lives of people across our entire city region.

For Liverpool, this is a particularly proud moment because it builds on the journey we have already been taking as a Marmot City.

Last year, Liverpool was officially awarded Marmot City status by Professor Sir Michael Marmot in recognition of our commitment to reducing health inequalities and improving wellbeing for every resident. That recognition reflected years of partnership working and a shared determination to address the social, economic and environmental factors that influence health outcomes.

We know the challenges we face. Too many people in our city still experience poorer health, shorter lives and fewer opportunities than they should. In some communities, residents can expect to live significantly shorter lives and spend more years in ill health compared to those living in more affluent areas. These inequalities are not inevitable, and as a city we have been determined to do something about them.

Through the Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Partnership, we have brought together organisations from across local government, the NHS, universities, housing, education, the voluntary sector and local communities to take collective action. Guided by the Marmot principles, the partnership is helping ensure that fairness, prevention and health equity are embedded into everything we do.

This progress would not be possible without the outstanding leadership and dedication of our Directors of Public Health and public health teams in Liverpool and across the city region. Their expertise, advocacy and tireless work to address the wider determinants of health have been instrumental in driving forward the Marmot agenda, strengthening partnerships and ensuring that reducing health inequalities remains at the forefront of our collective efforts.

Over the past year alone, we have seen remarkable progress.

We have strengthened our Health in All Policies approach, ensuring that health considerations are built into decisions about planning, regeneration and housing. We have expanded work that supports families to access healthier food, improved opportunities for community involvement in decision-making, and continued to focus on tackling poverty, physical inactivity and the wider determinants of health.

One of the achievements I am most proud of has been the launch and success of the Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Accreditation.

Developed collaboratively by local partners, the accreditation enables organisations to showcase their commitment to the Marmot principles and highlight the actions they are taking to improve the social, economic and environmental conditions that shape health and wellbeing.

Earlier this year, we celebrated the first accredited organisations, from community and voluntary groups to advice services and NHS partners. Together, they are demonstrating how organisations across the city can play a vital role in reducing inequalities and creating a fairer, healthier Liverpool.

Their work shows that improving health inequalities is not something any single organisation can do alone. It requires a collective effort, strong partnerships and a shared belief that everyone deserves the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilling life.

That is why Liverpool City Region becoming a Marmot City Region is such an important development.

The new commitment strengthens the work already being delivered through the All Together Fairer programme across Cheshire and Merseyside and creates greater alignment between local authorities, health partners and communities. It means that the principles driving change in Liverpool can now be supported and amplified across the wider city region.

Importantly, it also reflects the opportunities that devolution provides. Many of the factors that influence health outcomes sit within areas of responsibility now held at city region level. Whether it is creating better transport networks, supporting people into good-quality employment, improving housing, investing in skills or driving economic growth, these policies can all contribute to reducing health inequalities if designed with health and fairness in mind.

As Mayor Steve Rotheram rightly said, “where you grow up, the job you do or how much money you have in your pocket should not determine how long or how well you live”. That principle sits at the heart of the Marmot agenda and it is one that Liverpool has championed for many years.

The transition from Marmot City to Marmot City Region is not about starting again. It is about building on the strong foundations that have already been established. It is about bringing partners together at every level and ensuring that health equity becomes a shared responsibility across the whole system.

Liverpool has already shown what can be achieved when public services, communities, businesses and the voluntary sector work together towards a common goal. Now, with the support and leadership of the wider city region, we have an even greater opportunity to create lasting change.

Together, we can tackle the root causes of inequality, improve the conditions in which people live, work and grow, and ensure that everyone across Liverpool City Region has the chance to live a longer, healthier and happier life.

That is a vision worth working for, and one that I am proud to support.

In a world where real life is unpredictable and shaped by countless interconnected factors, Liverpool City Region’s panel at the recent IWG Global Summit on Women & Sport explored why linear thinking falls short.

Instead, we discussed how a whole-systems approach helps us see the bigger picture of what truly shapes people’s lives.

Our session – on the region’s locally-led movement for gender equity in physical activity – demonstrated that making lasting change requires starting with building trust and relationships.

I had the privilege of sharing the stage with Kirsty McLean from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Hazel Snell, High Sheriff of Merseyside, and Lisa O’Keefe MBE, Secretary General of IWG Women & Sport.

This mix of voices was highly intentional. To create a true city region-wide approach, we need international advocacy, civic leadership, and local government policy pulling in the same direction. Together, they are the puzzle pieces connecting grassroots action with top-down policy.

Confronting the Local Safety Gap

Our region boasts a phenomenal, globally recognised sporting heritage that continues to attract major international events.

However, this global spotlight makes it imperative that we look closely at our local realities. A thriving sporting culture cannot solely be about elite events; it must reflect who gets to participate safely in our local parks, gyms, and leisure centres.

Currently, according to Active Lives Survey data, only 58% of women in LCR achieve the recommended 150 minutes of weekly physical activity, compared to 62% of men – figures that drop further when intersectional inequalities are overlaid.

But the statistics that truly mandate action concern safety. Our region has previously been named the stalking capital of the UK and ranks among the worst for femicide.

Across LCR, 71% of women live in fear of sexual assault, leading many to avoid public spaces when they want to be active. Furthermore, 42% of women have experienced sexual harassment or intimidation in a leisure facility – a figure jumping to 83% for women aged 16-24.

These uncomfortable truths cannot be ignored. If physical activity systems do not challenge normalised sexism and weak reporting pathways, they reproduce the barriers they were meant to remove.

Tackling this is central to our recent achievement of Marmot City status, committing us to act on the social determinants of health. We cannot foster a healthy, equal city region if women and girls do not feel safe enough to step out their front doors.

A Blueprint for Structural Change

To change how things are done, we adopted a sister city-region approach alongside Greater Manchester. Together, we secured the signatures of both Metro Mayors on the Brighton Plus Helsinki Declaration, becoming the first place-based signatories in its 30-year history.

As discussed at the summit, this declaration provided the momentum to mobilise a collective, region-wide plan.

By exploring the socio-ecological model, we recognised that redesigning physical activity back into people’s lives meant tackling inequalities at every systemic layer. Ultimately, we share investor and philanthropist Michele Kang’s vision from Day One of the Summit: to reach a point where the only thing a girl has to do to succeed in sport is work hard. Achieving this requires collectively addressing the barriers scattered across these layers.

Devolution is the mobilising force. By aligning our goals with Mayoral pledges – such as using devolved powers to make public transport safer – we are working bottom-up and top-down simultaneously.

Growing a Movement

The declaration is only as powerful as the action it inspires. Driving this forward is our cross-system working group, bolstered by 48 pledgers from across our city regions who are committed to our shared vision.

Consequently, we are seeing the beginnings of tangible structural shifts:

• In partnership with St. Helens Borough Council, MSP has appointed a dedicated Women & Girls System Change Lead.

• We are partnering with the Health Equalities Group to embed active bystander education across the physical activity sector through a sustainable train-the-trainer model.

• Simultaneously, the LCR Combined Authority’s Active Travel team is implementing the changes needed to enable women to travel safely to and from activities, or simply move from place to place however works best for them.

Bringing our story to the IWG Summit reinforced why local action matters within a global context.

By sharing LCR’s journey internationally, we demonstrated that a place-based approach – one connecting grassroots experiences to top-down, mayoral leadership – can serve as a practical, working blueprint for the rest of the world.

Long before I became Mayor, I saw first-hand how the right opportunity at the right time can change the course of someone’s life.

In another life, I worked for the Learning and Skills Council, helping people find the training and support they needed to take their first steps into a career.

But my commitment to apprenticeships doesn’t just come from my professional experience – it comes from my own story.

I left school at 16 and, like many young people growing up in Britain in the 1980s, the choices ahead of me felt limited. University was not a realistic route for many working-class young people, even those with the ability to succeed. Opportunities for training, work experience and careers support were much harder to access than they are today.

The careers advisor offered me two choices: join the army or learn a trade. I wanted to start earning, build a future and learn a skill, so I became an apprentice bricklayer.

I loved my time as a brickie. It gave me the chance to learn a trade, travel the country – and even the world. I would see action in the Falklands but in the form of helping to rebuild it after the war.

It gave me the skills, confidence and experience to go on to start my own construction company in my twenties.

But the value of that apprenticeship went far beyond learning how to lay bricks. Those formative years gave me the belief that I could build something for myself and create opportunities I never thought possible. And it taught me skills that have served me well in every job since.

A lot has changed since I was standing where many young people are standing today, some questions remain exactly the same - what am I going to do with my life? What opportunities are out there? How do I build a future I can be proud of?

The difference today is that we have something we didn’t have back then - the ability to shape opportunities closer to home.

Devolution means places like the Liverpool City Region are no longer simply waiting for decisions to be made elsewhere. We have the power to bring together education, skills, employment support and employers to create opportunities that reflect the needs of our communities.

Because young people don’t experience life in silos. They don’t see education, health, careers and employment support as separate systems – they see one journey.

Our job is to make sure the support around them works in the same way.

That is why I welcome Alan Milburn’s Review and its focus on tackling the barriers that prevent too many young people from reaching their potential. It rightly recognises that too many young people are still falling through the gaps between education, employment, skills and support services.

Video: Watch Alan Milburn visit Liverpool City Region to See Youth Guarantee in Action

Too often, young people are expected to navigate a complicated system on their own – working out where to go, who to speak to and what opportunities are available.

That is why, here in the Liverpool City Region, we have spent years building a more joined-up approach – bringing together local authorities, schools, colleges, employers, employment support providers and community organisations around one shared ambition: giving every young person the opportunity to succeed.

My Young Person’s Guarantee is built on the simple principle that every young person should have access to the support, opportunities and connections they need to take their next step – whether that is into an apprenticeship, further training, employment or another route that helps them build a fulfilling future.

We were proud to be chosen by government as one of the country’s Youth Guarantee Trailblazer areas because it gives us the opportunity not only to test new ideas, but to demonstrate what can happen when decisions are made closer to the communities they affect.

And the results show why this approach matters.

Data released earlier this year shows that, in Sefton, just 3.8% of 16- to 17-year-olds are not in education, employment or training (NEET) – a figure that has halved since the scheme began in 2019.

Before 2019, Sefton Council only offered careers support to those over 16. Seven years ago, they decided to try something different by reaching younger people most at risk of becoming NEET and providing one-to-one support.

The hope was that by building a trusted relationship between a young person and a careers adviser, they would stay engaged with learning and plan their next steps.

That is what good support looks like. It is not about asking young people to fit into a system. It is about building a system that works around them.

Through apprenticeships, work experience and supported employment, businesses are helping young people gain the skills, confidence and experience they need to succeed.

At the same time, colleges, employment providers and community organisations are helping people prepare for work, overcome barriers and stay on the path towards a rewarding career.

That is the promise of devolution: understanding our communities, responding to their challenges and creating opportunities that work for the people who live here.

Across the Liverpool City Region, we are bringing together schools, colleges, employers, councils and communities around one shared ambition – to make sure every young person has the chance to realise their full potential.

Because I have always believed that talent is everywhere – and opportunity should be too.

That is what we are building here in the Liverpool City Region, a place where a young person’s background does not determine their future, and where the right support at the right time can change the course of a life.

If we can show what is possible when we put young people at the heart of our decisions, then we can help shape a better future not just for our region, but for the country as a whole.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that the Liverpool City Region is on course to become the first city region in the country to build a billion-pound music economy.

For anyone who knows this place, that headline feels less like news and more like confirmation.

Because music has never simply been something we consume here. It has helped define who we are.

Long before economic reports measured contribution or employment figures counted creative jobs, music was woven into everyday life across our communities. Its influence can be traced back generations.

In the early 1950s, Liverpool-born singer Lita Roza made history when How Much Is That Doggie in the Window? became the first UK number one single recorded by a British female artist. It may have been a novelty hit, but it signalled something bigger: Liverpool talent had the power to shape national culture.

At the same time, the city’s identity was being shaped by influences from across the world. Sailors returned from voyages carrying records, instruments and stories home with them. Sea shanties, American rhythm and blues, and sounds from overseas found their way into local communities, helping create a musical culture unlike anywhere else in Britain.

Then came the decade that changed everything.

The 1960s saw Merseybeat erupt from local venues onto the world stage. Liverpool became the epicentre of the global music conversation.

The Beatles became the defining band of a generation. Gerry and the Pacemakers gave us Ferry Cross the Mersey, capturing the spirit of the city in song. Cilla Black emerged as one of Britain’s biggest stars. Later, artists including Elvis Costello carried forward Liverpool’s tradition of producing voices that travelled far beyond the banks of our mighty river.

But music here has never belonged only to stages and studios.

Fans turned football terraces into choirs. On the Kop and at Goodison Park, supporters created a culture of singing that became famous worldwide. Music and identity merged into something uniquely Liverpudlian.

By the 1970s and 80s, the region was once again redefining British music. The Real Thing became one of the country’s most successful Black British groups, opening doors and producing songs that remain part of the national soundtrack. Frankie Goes to Hollywood dominated international charts with an unmistakable Liverpool attitude. Echo and the Bunnymen, A Teardrop Explodes, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, The Mighty Wah, The Christians, China Crisis, the Lightening Seeds, The Coral, Cast, Space, The Farm and Atomic Kitten carried that spirit into a new era.

And that story is still being written.

Today, Liverpool City Region’s music sector contributes £780 million to the local economy and supports around 15,000 jobs.

The region now has more than twice the concentration of music businesses, venues and specialist talent compared with the average UK city.

Our area also became the first place outside London to establish a dedicated Music Board in 2018, backed by £2.2 million of investment to strengthen the sector and support growth.

That ambition continues through MusicFutures, launched with £7 million of investment in partnership with the University of Liverpool, and through the Northern Music Export Office, we’re helping develop talent pipelines and connect local artists with global opportunities.

This is the latest chapter in a story that began generations ago but still flourished today (check out scouse playlists on Spotify).

A billion-pound music economy is recognition of something people here have always known.

Music isn’t just part of our story. It is produced and engineered - in our DNA.

Anyone who has spent time in the Liverpool City Region knows we’re not short of ideas, talent and ambition. What we’ve sometimes been short of are the tools to turn these things into reality.

For years we’ve had great businesses, brilliant universities and some of the most creative and hard-working people anywhere in the country.

But too often the investment needed to unlock that potential has either arrived too slowly or gone somewhere else.

That’s why the launch of the £2bn Liverpool City Region Investment Fund in March was such a big moment for our region. Put simply, it gives us the financial firepower to get things moving.

And this week at the UKREiiF regeneration conference, I’m delighted we’ll be building on that by announcing the first tranche of projects to receive support from the fund.

You can think of the fund a bit like the starter motor in a car. Private investors are the engine that ultimately drives economic growth, but engines need a spark to get going. This fund provides that spark.

By putting public investment in the right place first, we can unlock much larger sums of private capital and get major developments moving faster - creating new businesses, expanding companies and better jobs.

Crucially, this isn’t investment for investment’s sake. It’s part of a clear, long-term strategy that gives businesses and investors what they’ve been asking for; clarity of direction and a credible pathway to delivery.

And we’re not starting from scratch.

Over the past few years, we’ve already shown what can happen when decisions are made locally. We’ve built the most accessible train fleet in the country, rolled out 450km of ultra-fast digital network, and supported nearly 100,000 people into jobs, apprenticeships and training.

The Investment Fund is about building on that progress and stepping things up another gear. It also marks a shift away from fragmented, short-term funding, bringing transport, housing, skills, innovation and business support together into a single, coherent pipeline.

One of the biggest challenges for any region trying to grow its economy is something simple: space. For startups, for growing businesses and for innovation. Right now, that space isn’t always available when it’s needed.

Some of the first priorities for the fund will be creating more of it; high-quality office space in Liverpool city centre, new lab facilities, and modern industrial units across the wider region.

Our region has a world class reputation for innovation - and this investment fund gives us the tools to support the factors that underpin that.

Alongside this, we’re developing a clear ten-year pipeline aligned to our strongest sectors, from advanced manufacturing and life sciences to digital, creative industries and clean energy.

However, growth only really matters if people feel it in their everyday lives.

That’s why the Investment Fund won’t just support business development. It will also unlock a £2bn housing pipeline expected to deliver around 64,000 new homes, building on the infrastructure we’ve already delivered to better connect people with jobs and opportunities.

For me, a strong economy isn’t just measured by what happens inside office buildings or laboratories, but by whether people can find a decent home, get to work easily and see a future for themselves and their families here.

That’s also where our Mayoral Development Corporation will play a crucial role. We’re developing a full business case to transform 174 hectares of brownfield land into a new extension of Liverpool city centre, creating around 5 million square feet of commercial space and 17,700 new homes.

By bringing together public and private partners, and using new powers to accelerate planning and infrastructure delivery, the MDC will help unlock one of the UK’s most significant regeneration opportunities, building on momentum from investments like Everton FC’s new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

Our approach to place-based regeneration is also informing our work around Liverpool Central, a scheme of immense potential which along with the North Docks and KQ Liverpool has been highlighted in the first investment prospectus for the Great North, which was unveiled today.

Our region already has real momentum. Global companies like Kyndryl and LogChain are choosing to invest here, our universities are producing world-class talent, and more students are choosing to stay because they can see the opportunities opening up.

At the same time, we’re entering a new phase of devolution, with greater powers and a long-term financial settlement that gives us more control over our future.

The Liverpool City Region has always been a place that looks outward, and this Investment Fund is about carrying that tradition forward, unlocking sites, backing future industries and creating opportunities so people don’t feel they have to leave to succeed.

More than that, it sends a clear signal: Liverpool City Region is ready to partner with investors at scale, using public funding to unlock far greater private and institutional capital.

In short, it’s about making sure the next chapter in our story is written right here.

And if the last few years have shown us anything, it’s this: when our region gets the tools it needs, there’s very little we can’t achieve.

When I was a kid, one of the reasons I had heard of Hamburg was as a Beatles fan, and because Kevin Keegan had broken my heart by agreeing to transfer to their football club.

However, Liverpool City Region’s identity is deeply intertwined with its maritime heritage.

From its historic docks to its global trading networks, the city region has long been shaped by its relationship with the sea.

Being invited to be the official partner of Hamburg’s internationally renowned maritime festival – the Hafengeburtstag - represents a powerful opportunity to celebrate that legacy while delivering real economic, cultural, and reputational benefits for the future.

Of course, the bilateral relations between Germany and the UK spans hundreds of years and since the end of the second world war we have been united again. This relationship has been further strengthened by the post-Brexit Kensington Treaty, which was signed last July. And I’m delighted we are building on this platform at a city-region level.

At its core, this partnership reinforces Liverpool’s status as a global maritime city. Hamburg, like Liverpool, is one of Europe’s most significant port hubs, with a proud history of trade, shipping, and waterfront regeneration.

By aligning with such a prestigious international event, Liverpool City Region signals its ambition to operate confidently on the world stage. This visibility plays a crucial role in attracting inward investment, particularly in logistics, advanced manufacturing, and maritime services, while reinforcing the message that Liverpool is a city region looking outward and forward.

Central to the visit is the high-level delegation we are taking to Hamburg. This delegation brings together key businesses, academic institutions, and cultural organisations from across the region, presenting a united and compelling offer to international partners.

Their mission is not only to promote the best of the Liverpool City Region, but to actively build lasting relationships and develop collaborations with counterparts in Hamburg.

By showcasing strengths across innovation, education, culture, and industry, the delegation demonstrates the depth and diversity of opportunity within the city region, and its readiness to engage globally.

The maritime festival also creates a valuable platform for international collaboration. Events of this scale bring together cities, companies, and thought leaders from across the world, making them ideal environments for knowledge sharing and partnership building. Engagement with Hamburg opens doors to collaboration on port innovation, sustainability, decarbonisation, and trade, ensuring the region continues to build strong international connections and unlock new opportunities.

Tourism is another major area of benefit. Maritime festivals attract hundreds of thousands of visitors, alongside global media attention. As an official partner, Liverpool City Region gains access to this international audience, raising awareness of its own waterfront, cultural attractions, and events. There is clear potential for reciprocal tourism, with visitors inspired to experience Liverpool’s iconic skyline, historic assets, and vibrant hospitality scene, further boosting our already burgeoning £6.27bn visitor economy.

Of course, it would be impossible to talk about the relationship between our regions without mentioning music. One standout opportunity within the festival is the chance to showcase our world-renowned music scene to an audience of hundreds of thousands of people.

Music is at the heart of the Liverpool City Region’s global identity - from The Beatles to today’s thriving up-and-coming artists - and Hamburg itself holds a special place in that story. Promoting local talent on such a prominent international platform means we can not only celebrate our heritage, but introduce new audiences to our creative future.

This cultural connection is further strengthened through Liverpool City Region’s presence in Hamburg’s City Hall, where we are honoured to stage a special exhibition celebrating the deep and historic ties between our two regions.

The exhibition highlights shared maritime heritage, cultural exchange, and the enduring relationship between Liverpool and Hamburg. In particular, we are grateful to all those who contributed rare letters, photographs, and memorabilia that bring to life the Beatles’ Hamburg story - an important chapter in the global cultural bond between our cities. Their contributions have helped create a powerful and authentic showcase of this shared history. And we hope to bring this unique exhibition back to the City Region this summer. So watch this space....

Alongside its cultural and economic benefits, the partnership also supports Liverpool City Region’s ambitions in innovation and high-growth sectors. During the visit, I’ll be signing a Memorandum of Understanding on artificial intelligence with Hamburg’s Artificial Intelligence Centre. This landmark agreement reflects a forward-looking vision that builds on traditional strengths while embracing emerging technologies.

Liverpool recently placed third in the European Capital of Innovation, and this AI MOU will create a platform to forge new opportunities and partnerships to further boost the city region’s blossoming deep tech sector. By connecting Liverpool’s growing ecosystem of innovators, researchers, and digital businesses with one of Europe’s leading AI centres, the agreement will help unlock collaboration in research, commercialisation, skills, and investment, accelerating growth in high-value industries and strengthening the region’s position in the global innovation economy.

The maritime sector itself remains a key pillar of growth, supported by ongoing investment in port infrastructure, freeport status, and green energy initiatives such as offshore wind.

Engagement with a leading maritime and innovation hub like Hamburg allows Liverpool to position itself at the forefront of discussions around the future of shipping, smart port technology, and decarbonisation, enhanced by the integration of AI and digital solutions.

Ultimately, this partnership is about more than presence at an event. It is about positioning Liverpool City Region as a place that honours its past while actively shaping its future. By combining maritime heritage, cultural strength, and innovation ambition, the region is making a clear statement: it is open, connected, and ready to lead on the global stage.

Oh, and that footballer who broke my heart in 1977, he sends a message to the club he left LFC to join “Ich liebe dich, Hamburg” ( “I love you, Hamburg”.)

This month marks an exciting moment for Liverpool’s creative economy as we welcome the Creative Cities Convention (CCC) to our city.

Bringing together leading voices from across the UK and global creative industries, this is more than a conference - it’s a statement of intent about the City Region’s role as a powerhouse for creativity, innovation and inclusive growth.

Taking place during May, as Liverpool also celebrates Music Month, the event adds to an already vibrant period for the city’s creative sector, highlighting the breadth and strength of our cultural and creative offer.

As Chair of the Creative Industries Board, I’m incredibly proud of the collaboration that has made this possible.

Working closely with our partners and the CCC team, we have brought the convention to Liverpool, recognising the opportunity it offers, not only to showcase our strengths, but to open doors for the people who live and work across our region.

Putting Liverpool on the global creative map

Liverpool has always been a creative city - but moments like this remind the world of the role we play today.

Hosting CCC brings some of the biggest names in global content and media to our city. From the BBC and Channel 4 to YouTube, Amazon and Sony Pictures, Liverpool is the setting for conversations that will help shape the future of the industry.

It creates real opportunities for local businesses, freelancers and organisations to build connections that would not normally happen on their doorstep. And it demonstrates clearly that Liverpool is not just keeping up - we are helping to define what comes next.

The event also marks Channel 4 CEO Priya Dogra’s first major industry appearance, underlining the region’s growing significance as a stage for national media leadership and future-facing conversations.

Opening doors for local talent

A core priority for the Creative Industries Board has been ensuring this opportunity is accessible to local communities. That is why we secured discounted tickets for people across the Liverpool City Region.

We also wanted to go further. Supporting freelancers and individuals from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds is central to our work. By making additional tickets available where cost would otherwise be a barrier, we are helping ensure that access to CCC reflects the breadth of talent in our region.

Talent is everywhere in the Liverpool City Region. Our responsibility is to make sure opportunity is too.

Inspiring the next generation

Hosting CCC also creates a powerful moment for young people and aspiring creatives. Hearing directly from successful figures, particularly those with roots in our region, can be transformative.

Voices such as Phil Redmond and Jimmy McGovern demonstrate what is possible. Their careers show that world-class creative success can begin here.

Representation matters. Seeing people from your community achieve at the highest-level builds both belief and ambition, and CCC provides a vital platform for those stories to be shared.

Building skills for the future

Alongside the main convention, the Skills Summit plays a critical role in strengthening the talent pipeline. Supporting both mid-career professionals and those entering the industry, it reflects our commitment to long-term, sustainable growth.

I am particularly pleased to see Lime Pictures taking an active role. As a major regional employer in the screen industries, their involvement highlights the importance of strong collaboration between industry and skills providers.

By aligning employers, educators and talent, we can ensure the Liverpool City Region continues to develop the skills needed to thrive in a fast-evolving creative landscape.

This is just the start

Hosting CCC is not the end goal. It is a stepping stone.

It demonstrates what is possible when we act with shared ambition and purpose. It also sets the tone for the future we are building: a creative economy that is open, ambitious and inclusive.

The Creative Industries Board will continue to champion that vision - bringing in new opportunities, supporting talent, and ensuring more people can be part of our growing cluster.

Liverpool has always had a story to tell.

Right now, more people are listening than ever.

And that is something we should all be proud of.

In February, I took up a part-time seconded role as Senior Place Advisor at the Office for the Impact Economy (OfIE). I want to share what that means – not just for me personally, or for Kindred, but for the communities and organisations we’re all part of.

The OIE was launched last November as a ‘single front door’ for impact investors, philanthropists and purpose-driven businesses to partner with government and grow their social impact. Led by Darren Jones MP, Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, its ambition is significant: to unlock billions in private money to increase impact across the country. That includes driving cross-government strategy, building capacity across national and local authorities, and identifying and supporting the development of new partnerships.

But here’s what excites me most about it – and why I think it matters beyond the headlines.

This isn’t just about money, it’s about decision-making. The OfIE represents something genuinely new: a commitment to devolving not just money, but the power to shape how that funding works, to the places and communities that understand their needs best. That’s a meaningful shift. For too long, the logic of economic growth has flowed in one direction – from the centre outward. The Office for the Impact Economy is reaching toward something different: growth that is place-based, people-led and built to last.

Liverpool City Region has been on this journey for a while. Through the work of organisations like Kindred and our partners and colleagues across the region, we’ve spent years developing the regional ecosystem, the relationships and the thinking that makes genuine place-based impact possible. I’m proud of that. Kindred was one of the examples highlighted in the OfIE’s launch announcement and that recognition reflects the real, hard-won work of so many people across our city region.

We’re not alone in this, of course. Other places around the country are doing brilliant, innovative work – and that’s something to celebrate too. I’ve joined the OfIE alongside BBRC’s Chief Executive Ed Rowberry, who’s bringing expertise from Bristol and Bath – another trailblazer in place-based impact. Together, we are working to embed our shared learning into a national approach, supported by a fantastic team at OfIE, led by Emily Braid.

Part of what makes this moment feel so important is that it’s not about one region leading and others following. It’s about building a framework that’s genuinely inclusive: one that learns from the places that have been pioneering and actively supports those who are keen to grow their impact but aren’t as far down the road yet. After all, one principle we know to be true is that places learn best from other places. An engine for inclusive growth, in the truest sense.

In my first few weeks, I’ve been speaking to as many people as possible who are working to grow impact in places across the UK. Listening more than talking, mostly. What do places need? What’s working? What are the barriers? Those conversations will directly shape the OfIE’s approach to place partnerships – and that feels like the right way to start.

This is an opportunity to bring the lived, real-world insights of our communities into the heart of national decision-making. To make sure the voices of the people closest to the challenges – and the solutions – are heard where it counts.

I couldn’t be more proud to play a small part in building it, but we couldn’t have done this without the work of Liverpool City Region’s socially-trading organisations, who work day in day out to create impact; or without the support of our partners here, or the vision of Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Power to Change, who saw Kindred’s potential to support place-based impact and a fairer regional economy and backed us more than five years ago. As well as leading Kindred, I also sit on Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Business and Enterprise Board and work closely with sector leaders to drive inclusive growth across the city region in line with the city region’s local growth plan.

So, I’m carrying with me the experiences, ambitions and hard-won lessons of Liverpool City Region, but I’m also here to listen and learn from everywhere else. The goal is a lasting national place partnerships approach for the impact economy – something that exists beyond individual funds or spending rounds and creates a genuine policy legacy for future generations. Not a quick fix, but a foundation.

Changes to Green Book funding rules, increased national funding, and the recent statement on future fiscal devolution, combined with further devolution to Mayoral Combined Authorities, all inject further momentum into regional growth programmes - but the need for private finance to fund growth continues to loom large.

Moving projects into delivery relies on more than national policy or government action alone: early integration of local, regional and industry partners could hold the key to crowding in finance and delivering at pace and scale across the UK.

Recent research by AtkinsRéalis on the appetite of international investors for UK infrastructure painted a bittersweet picture: 90% see the UK as an attractive market, ranked well above European and American markets for investment in the next three years. Importantly, more than three-quarters (79%) are interested in regional growth programmes, with a third already exploring options to invest.

However, just 19% would prioritise the UK over other regions. Investors stress the need for greater confidence through clear pipelines, alignment of local and national priorities, and the right resources and capabilities for delivery. Worryingly, nearly two-thirds of investors have walked away from UK projects because the business case didn’t stack up.

The investment case

Investors are drawn to regional growth programmes for a range of reasons, with the opportunity to support regeneration and growth in specific regions and alignment with long-term government strategies as the two most prominent. The proposition of regional growth recognises that infrastructure opportunities are interlinked and standalone projects in themselves do little to create region-wide uplift.

Housing demand is unlocked through effective transport links; transport investment unlocks land value and attracts further commercial activity.

The Government’s overhaul of the Green Book to focus criteria on place-based business cases rather than narrow benefit-cost ratios brings to the fore broader economic, social and productivity gains. Local authorities are now better positioned to support this model with the right tools and mechanisms in place.

Devolution’s frontline delivery vehicles

Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCAs) now hold significant devolved powers across planning, transport, skills and housing, which are the levers required to drive place-based economic transformation.

In addition, the Chancellor’s plans to develop a roadmap for fiscal devolution is a positive move in helping to de-risk and strengthen propositions for investors, but the timeline for revenue-raising powers for MCAs will be critical in regions’ ability to attract private finance to fund and deliver local growth plans.

By setting clear regional priorities, coordinating public-private coalitions, and establishing long-term pipeline delivery, MCAs are well-placed to create investable propositions. However, success will depend on clear alignment between local and national priorities to instil investor confidence, and the ability to convene a broad group of stakeholders and partners early in the programme to create clear pathways for decision-making and delivery.

Liverpool Central Station is at the heart of a £5bn regeneration programme that illustrates what place-based investment can achieve at scale. The scheme will transform an 86-acre gateway into an integrated transport hub and catalyse housing, employment and connectivity across the city region. It is one of four national pilots for the reformed Green Book, testing how multi-departmental appraisal can capture the full economic value of regional infrastructure. AtkinsRéalis has supported Liverpool City Region Combined Authority on the business case and funding strategy, including options for private sector investment alongside public funding.

In parallel, “growth corridors” are fast becoming the framework for accelerated delivery as they reduce fragmentation and present investors with a pipeline rather than a handful of unconnected schemes.

The West Midlands Investment Prospectus 2025 is a prime example. It has identified the region’s most investable corridors, sites and programmes across transport, regeneration and innovation and is structured explicitly to simplify and accelerate the path to private capital.

A new approach

In order to unlock regional investment, there are four specific requirements investors apply when assessing regional opportunities: financial clarity, policy stability, robust risk management and integrated delivery.

Meeting those requirements demands a different approach to programme development. Where the traditional model sequences business cases, approvals and funding frameworks one after another with the potential to create delays which investors see as deal-breakers, an integrated approach brings finance, delivery and technical partners in from the outset.

The result is faster approvals, stronger business cases and risk profiles that institutional capital can actually work with.

The role of integrator is central in helping authorities structure investable corridor pipelines and embed the controls needed to meet investor standards. Integration across strategy, engineering, commercial modelling, assurance and delivery is increasingly making the difference between a region that wins investment and one that lags behind.

If we get those conditions right, private investment will no longer be the missing piece in the regional growth puzzle; it will be the accelerant, but the time to act is now.

Cannes has a certain mystique with people of my generation. Film stars used to walk the Croisette with paparazzi flashbulbs recording their every move. Over the last 36 years though, the Palais des Festivals has been a magnet for the investor world.

The catwalk has been replaced with a beauty parade of major cities competing to catch the eye of a sovereign wealth fund or two, with a mesmerising display of investible projects as box-office as any Hollywood star.

This week I headed up a delegation of public and private sector institutions from the Liverpool City Region, in Cannes, at MIPIM - the world’s biggest gathering of investors, developers and city leaders.

Despite the elegance of its backdrop, events like this matter to ordinary citizens. The projects on offer create good jobs, build the homes in our communities and unlock the next phase of growth in our region.

Quite simply we have to be out there making the case for the Liverpool City Region on a world stage as MIPIM is where opportunity meets ambition – and this week we arrived with both.

Our message was simple and clear: now is the time to invest here.

We brought with us more than £11bn worth of genuine opportunities across the city region - from major regeneration schemes and innovation campuses to new commercial developments.

We’re not talking about pipedreams, or unrealisable potential here. This is about deliverable pipelines - real schemes, real sites and real delivery.

But just as important as the scale of the opportunities is the fact that we now have the tools to deliver them.

Devolution has given us the ability to shape our own future - whether that’s investing in a publicly owned train fleet, bringing buses back under public control, developing the country’s fastest broadband network, or backing the industries that will power our economy in the years ahead.

This week, we took another big step forward.

One of the biggest announcements that made the headlines was the launch of a £2bn Investment Fund.

In simple terms, it gives us the firepower to unlock sites that have stood still for decades to accelerate developments that create jobs and opportunity across our six boroughs.

The fund will support new commercial space, modern industrial sites and research facilities for the sectors where our region already has real strengths - from advanced manufacturing and life sciences to digital and AI.

But just as importantly, it will help accelerate housebuilding across the region, improve infrastructure - and respond to sector growth - helping to deliver tens of thousands of new homes, whilst tackling the infrastructure requirements communities need to thrive.

Growth only really matters if people can see and feel the benefits in their everyday lives. This fund is about making sure that happens.

We also confirmed the next steps towards establishing a Mayoral Development Corporation for Liverpool’s North Docks.

This stretch of waterfront is one of the most exciting regeneration opportunities anywhere in the country - running from the city centre up towards Everton’s new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

By bringing planning powers, land assembly, investment and development partners together, we can unlock the potential of an area that has shaped our city’s story for centuries - creating new homes, jobs and public spaces along the Mersey, growing the heart of the city and enhancing its world-famous skyline.

Beetham Davos’ proposed high-rise Kings development looking south towards Liverpool city centre

But our sell to the investor market is not just about an abundance of opportunities in Liverpool. In Halton, Knowsley, Sefton, St Helens and the Wirral we marketed exciting schemes to attract attention either as distinct projects, or by packaging up a number of them to provide the scale that many investors prefer.

Alongside all of this, we unveiled plans for a pioneering Industrial Strategy Zone, bringing together initiatives like our Freeport and Innovation Zone to create the conditions businesses need to invest and grow.

I’ve never had anyone on the many thousands of doors that I have knocked on tell me that they were voting for me because of these types of strategies, but without them, the government and wider market won’t invest the quantum of funding needed to turn the vision into a reality.

The aim is simple of our approach is simple: to make the Liverpool City Region one of the best places in the UK for companies in growth sectors to start up, scale up and stay.

Because the industries of the future should be creating opportunities for people here at home.

Of course, MIPIM itself is about more than announcements. It doesn’t take a lengthy train journey or flight to the Côte d’Azur to hold such conversations. Teams and Zoom meeting are a staple of everyday commerce.

And some of the most important moments happen in chance meetings, where snatched conversations lead to exchanges where you start to see the next opportunities take shape.

One of the most encouraging conversations I had this week was about how we boost construction skills across our region.

If we’re serious about delivering thousands of new homes, new commercial space and major regeneration projects, then we also have to be serious about training the people who will build them. Making sure local people can access those jobs - and that businesses have the skilled workforce they need - is absolutely central to our plans.

Those kinds of conversations are exactly why being at such events matter.

What really struck me this year is how the conversation around the Liverpool City Region has changed.

Brand ‘Liverpool’ was spoken about in an entirely positive manner. The global market is looking at our area in a new and exciting way. Investors can see the momentum we are building, and they want to be part of it.

They can see that we’re serious about shaping our own future.

Being in Cannes this week is, in many ways, just the modern version of projecting an image.

The brand of Liverpool is once again in the spotlight.

The difference now is that we’re not just talking about the Liverpool City Region’s potential.

We’re showing how we’re turning that potential into reality - and inviting the world to be part of that success.

As we head towards sharing our masterplan for Kings, our new neighbourhood on Liverpool’s northern waterfront, we are focusing as much on the spaces between the buildings as the buildings themselves.

Encouraging dwell time, social interaction, movement and activity will knit the neighbourhood together. Activating the different squares, terraces, lawns and steps that will be a key feature of Kings will be part of our ongoing management commitment once the scheme is delivered. If you’ve enjoyed King’s Cross in London, you’ll understand.

As Liverpool ONE demonstrated almost two decades ago, when these things are strategically planned from the outset, you don’t get a ‘scheme’, you get a natural extension to the existing form of the city. You can wander in and out of the 42-acre Liverpool ONE estate and never notice the join, and so it will be with Kings.

Our investment is comparable in scale, too, and, when consented, our vision will be as transformational: a whole new neighbourhood that links the business district to the east with the waterfront to the west, whilst providing the first significant extension northwards to Everton’s magnificent new stadium. It will be the first large-scale development in the Metro Mayor’s emerging Mayoral Development Corporation for the North Docks and a beacon of confidence that should generate considerable investment in its wake.

The component parts have been carefully thought-through, as has the scheduling for their delivery. You need people to bring a neighbourhood to life, so we’ll focus first on the residential towers at the north of the development: residents will create much of the initial demand for what follows in terms of the scheme’s leisure and food offer.

From there the scheme will progress to its leisure zone in the centre of the neighbourhood, the beating heart of Kings. A five-star hotel and residences, a neighbouring four-star hotel, plus a comprehensive food and beverage offer and the sort of public realm that encourages people to stop and linger. It’ll be of a quality to draw people into the neighbourhood, whether office workers, people on the way to the match, cruise visitors, tourists or residents themselves.

At the south will be our work zone, anchored by a high-quality Grade A office building that will offer a home to blue chip footloose occupiers needing to tap into the city-region’s talent pool. New workspaces for tech-entrepreneurs and start-ups will face Bath Street, animating the entire stretch and creating a High Street feel at its western boundary.

Foremost in our thinking is the quality of materials and their collective composition. We want a neighbourhood that feels organic, not uniform. Buildings that wear their materiality and setting with confidence. Our scheme will create a skyline that befits a confident, maritime city. The UK’s only waterfront skyscraper cluster that points to our Atlanticism and enduring ties with America. We gave birth to skyscrapers, after all, with Peter Ellis’s groundbreaking Oriel Chambers, the world’s first metal-framed, glass curtain walled building, way back in 1864. That spirit of innovation, adventure and bravura infuses our thinking, too. Liverpool has never been faint of heart; shy in its expressiveness; or timid in the face of challenge, and nor are we.

As our strapline says, Kings is Made for Liverpool. Made for the World. It is our newest point of welcome to visitors and a symbol of renewed confidence and the enduring strength of partnership between the private and public sectors. We are taking it to MIPIM as part of our own work to attract further investors to participate in the scheme’s delivery and enjoy the upside it will create. For everybody else, it’ll be about enjoying its facilities and beautiful public realm. And now, with planning consent secured for our first tower, No.1 Kings, it’s full steam ahead. Come and enjoy the journey.

Hugh Frost (pictured above) is chairman of Beetham Davos Limited who, with Davos Property Developments Limited, will be delivering Kings. He pioneered residential skyscrapers outside London, starting with Beetham Tower and West Tower in Liverpool, immediately to the east of the Kings boundary.

Anyone who has spent time in the Liverpool City Region knows we’re not short of ideas, talent and ambition.

What we’ve sometimes been short of are the tools to turn these things into reality.

For years we’ve had great businesses, brilliant universities and some of the most creative and hard-working people anywhere in the country.

But too often the investment needed to unlock that potential has either arrived too slowly or gone somewhere else.

That’s why the launch of the £2bn Liverpool City Region Investment Fund is such a big moment for our region.

Put simply it gives us the financial firepower to get things moving.

You can think of the fund a bit like the starter motor in a car. Private investors are the engine that ultimately drives economic growth. But engines need a spark to get going. This fund provides that spark.

By putting public investments in the right place first, we can unlock much larger sums of capital investment and get major developments moving faster. That means new businesses opening their doors, companies expanding, and more good jobs for people across our region.

And we’re not starting from scratch.

Over the past few years, we’ve already shown what can happen when decision and investment can be made locally.

We’ve built the most accessible train fleet anywhere in the country; rolled out 450km of ultra-fast digital network connecting thousands of businesses; and supported nearly a hundred thousand people into jobs, apprenticeships and training,

The Investment Fund is about banking that progress, but then stepping things up another gear.

One of the biggest challenges for any region trying to grow its economy is something surprisingly simple: space. Space for new companies to start up. Space for growing businesses to expand. Space for scientists and innovators to turn ideas into real-world breakthroughs.

Right now, that space isn’t always available when businesses need it.

Some of the first priorities for the fund will be creating more of it - high-quality office space in Liverpool city centre, new lab facilities for science and innovation, and modern industrial units across the wider region. These are the kind of places where new industries take root and where the jobs of the future are created.

However, growth only really matters if people feel it in their everyday lives.

That’s why the Investment Fund won’t just support business development. It will also unlock a £2bn housing pipeline expected to deliver around 64,000 new homes, building on the infrastructure we’ve already delivered - including new rail stations, bus depot improvements and the planning for a rapid transport system to better connect people with jobs and opportunities.

For me, a strong economy isn’t just measured by what happens inside office buildings or laboratories. It’s also measured by whether people can find a decent home, breathe fresh air, get to work easily, enjoy cultural attractions and see a future for themselves and their families right here in the place they grew up.

Our region already has real momentum. Global companies like Kyndryl and LogChain are choosing to invest here against stiff competition. Our universities are producing world-class research and talent. And more and more students are choosing to stay here after graduation because they can see the opportunities opening up.

At the same time, we’re entering a new phase of devolution, with greater powers and a long-term financial settlement from government that gives us more control over our own future. That means we can think bigger, plan further ahead and move faster.

The Liverpool City Region has always been a place that looks outward. For centuries our docks connected us to the world - bringing trade, ideas and opportunities to our shores. That spirit of innovation and openness still runs through the region today.

This Investment Fund is about carrying that tradition forward. It’s about unlocking sites that have stood vacant for too long, backing the industries that will shape the future and create the kind of opportunities that mean young people growing up here today don’t feel they have to leave to get on in life.

In short, it’s about making sure the next chapter in our region’s story is written right here - by the people who live and work in the Liverpool City Region.

And if the last few years have shown us anything, it’s this: when our region gets the tools it needs, there’s very little we can’t achieve.

There are numerous songs written about bus and train journeys. They inspired The Beatles’ A Day in the Life, The Who’s Magic Bus and The Monkees’ Last Train to Clarksville – to name but a few.

For most of us, public transport is woven into the fabric of everyday life.

It’s the train you catch into work, the bus that gets the kids to school, the ferry that still gives you that little lift when you see the skyline from the water. When it works well, you barely think about it. When it doesn’t, it can throw your whole day off before it’s properly begun.

Over the past few years, we’ve been steadily transforming the way people travel across the Liverpool City Region. Not with one grand gesture, but with a constant feed of practical changes that are making journeys simpler, fairer and more reliable for the 1.6 million people who live here.

The introduction of our new £500m fleet of trains was a huge step forward. They’re the first publicly owned trains in a generation, and they feel different the moment you step on board - brighter, more spacious, fully accessible, designed for and around passengers.

Level boarding makes a real difference for wheelchair users and parents with prams. Air conditioning and open walk-through carriages make commuting that bit more comfortable. Reliability is improving with an ambition to consistently be the best performing network in the country.

There’s a quiet pride in knowing that these trains belong to the people in our region. Decisions about them are taken here, in the interests of the passengers who use them every day.

Now we’ve reached another milestone with the rollout of smart ticketing across the Merseyrail network. For years, the travelling public have had to queue for paper tickets and work out which fare covered which journey.

From now on, it is as simple as you can tap in and tap out with your bank card, phone or smartwatch, and the system will automatically calculate the best value fare.

It’s straightforward. No standing in queues waiting to be served as the train approaches the station. No rummaging for change. No second-guessing whether you bought the right ticket. Just a quicker, smoother start and end to your journey.

Staff and ticket offices remain in place because modernising the system doesn’t have to mean removing the human touch that so many passengers rely on.

Rail is only part of the picture. Buses are the backbone of many communities, yet for decades routes and fares outside London have largely been determined by a privatised and deregulated system that didn’t always put passengers first. That’s why we’ve taken the decision to bring our buses back under local control.

The first publicly controlled services will begin this September, with the full network in place by 2027. That gives us the ability to design routes around where people actually need to go - linking up with rail services, connecting town centres, hospitals and colleges, and ensuring that communities aren’t left isolated because a route isn’t commercially attractive.

We introduced a £2 fare cap in 2022 to ease pressure on household budgets, and earlier this year we froze Merseyrail fares while prices elsewhere increased. Keeping travel affordable matters to people, especially at a time when families are watching every penny.

Then there’s the ferry - an enduring symbol of our region. A Ferry Cross the Mersey is more than a line in a Gerry Marsden song; it’s part of who we are. We’re investing £26m in a brand-new vessel, being built locally on the banks of the river it will serve. It will carry forward the character and heritage people cherish, while using cleaner, more efficient technology and improved accessibility. An old favourite, redesigned for the next chapter of our story.

All of these pieces are coming together as part of a much bigger plan. We’ve secured £1.6bn in transport funding - the largest investment of its kind in our region’s history - to continue modernising and connecting our network.

We are not only taking stations back under local control, we are building another four in addition to the two new stations already completed.

The aim is clear: a fully integrated, London-style system where rail, bus and ferry work seamlessly together, where ticketing is simple, and where decisions are made locally by people who understand the needs of our communities.

Good transport expands horizons. It means a young person in Knowsley can reach an apprenticeship opportunity on the Wirral without a complicated, costly journey. It means a shift worker in St Helens can rely on getting home safely at the end of a long day. It means businesses can attract talent because people can travel easily across borough boundaries.

There’s still more to do, and I won’t pretend the job is finished. But when you see our new trains pulling into stations, tap through the gates without breaking stride, board a bus that’s part of a joined-up network, or watch a new ferry take shape against the skyline, you can feel the momentum building.

Step by step, we’re creating a transport system that reflects the ambition of our region - practical, proud and built around the people it serves.

As an avid road cyclist, the recent announcement that the second stage of the 2027 Tour de France would finish in Liverpool is thrilling.

My phone buzzed that evening with my cycling companions sharing their excitement, with early plans hatched to see the oldest and most prestigious of the Grand Tours return to the UK.

The event promises to be spectacular: broadcasting the best of our City Region to millions of viewers across the world, with our iconic waterfront providing a fitting backdrop to the second day of the Grand Départ and the conclusion of the 223 km stage.

However, for my colleagues and I in the Liverpool City Region’s Active Travel Team, the significance of this event goes far beyond elite sport. Major events like this can be a catalyst for long-term behaviour change and we see an opportunity to celebrate ‘cycling for all’ and build a meaningful and sustained legacy.

Beyond the finish line

We are currently working with our local authorities to deliver a high-quality, 600km active travel network. Guided by the mayor’s vision, this network is designed to be safe, comfortable, and attractive - accessible to everyone, for everyday journeys, no lycra required.

Our goal is to make walking, wheeling, and cycling the natural first choice for short trips across the region.

Complementing this investment in infrastructure, our team’s commitment to this legacy is already in motion through several key initiatives, such as:

Education: We manage one of the nation’s largest Bikeability contracts, providing essential cycle training to primary school children and secondary school children. The journey to school and places of education is a focus for our team and we are working together as a region to really make a difference to children, young people, and their families. Removing barriers to walking, wheeling, and cycling along roads and streets to make access to schools, colleges, and other community education places safer, more pleasant, and comfortable for everyone.

Wellbeing: We support Social Prescribing programmes that use active travel to improve mental and physical health. This could be as simple as a group walking or indeed the loan of a cycle and equipment.

Inclusion: Through the Households into Work team, we equip residents with the tools they need to travel actively to employment opportunities; we are actively researching how to dismantle the specific barriers faced by women and girls; and we support organisations such as Wheels for All ensure that disabled people can enjoy the freedom and health benefits of cycling.

Behaviour Change: Our programmes encourage residents to rethink how they move, helping to create a City Region that is a more vibrant, liveable place to work and stay.

The Tour de France is coming to our streets, and we are determined to ensure an impact beyond the lycra, and long after the final sprint on the Strand.

In 2016, we gathered with stakeholders from across the city region and the UK at the London headquarters of the Royal College of Physicians to launch Knowledge Quarter Liverpool (KQ Liverpool).

Our founding members - University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group and Liverpool City Council - wanted to harness the city region’s knowledge economy and the strength of its innovation facilities to develop a world-class destination for science, education, technology and culture, to deliver inclusive growth.

The event was also an opportunity to mark the news that the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) had chosen Liverpool, in a KQ Liverpool led bid against strong competition from Manchester and Leeds, for its new northern headquarters, to be housed in a new landmark building known as The Spine, at the heart of Liverpool City Council’s flagship development site at Paddington Village.

Fast forward ten years and KQ Liverpool is now one of the UK’s most successful innovation districts, with more than 400 businesses employing 15,000 people, and welcoming 60,000 students.

In 2020 we created a spin-out development company, Sciontec, to bring investment into the quarter.

A competitive process led to Bruntwood SciTech joining KQ Liverpool as its sixth subscribing member and as a shareholder in Sciontec, which today owns and operates the highly successful Liverpool Science Park and CENTRAL TECH buildings and manages the all-inclusive workspace at The Spine. Sciontec is also developing HEMISPHERE One, a major £67m laboratory and workspace scheme at Paddington Village.

• View from The Spine in Paddinton Village

Major milestones include becoming a founding member of the UK Innovation Districts Group and joining the Global Institute of Innovation Districts. We helped Liverpool to rank third in the 2026 European Capital of Innovation Awards. We’ve also won 15 industry awards in recognition of our placemaking and social value achievements.

Our KQ Futures inclusive innovation programme reaches hundreds of students each year and our book, The Animates: Learning in Liverpool, was distributed to 433 primary schools across LCR, helping to introduce young children to innovation.

None of this could be possible without the foresight and guidance of our board and the support of non-subscribing members and observers including Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, Fabric District CIC, Hope Street CIC and the RCP.

To celebrate, we’re planning ‘ten for ten’ events and initiatives. Among those, I’ll be putting my running shoes back on (after last year’s 52-mile LCR in a Day run) and undertaking an endurance challenge raising money for Clatterbridge Cancer Charity, The Brain Charity and Alfie’s Squad.

My personal mission is to give young people the best chance in life, through charitable fundraising, and also raise their aspirations, through the work of the KQ Liverpool team. The motivation harks back to my own background as the son of a Lancashire coal mines worker and being the first in my family to get to a University.

I still remember my Dad joking about me going to University, asking ‘when was I going to get a proper job’. He was proud though and I’m proud of what we, as a team, are doing to improve people’s lives here in Liverpool.

We are just putting the finishing touches to my KQ Liverpool 10th anniversary ultra running challenge, so watch this space!

Other 10th anniversary activities include a time capsule capturing today’s technology and future aspirations, ready to be opened in 2040, a community festival recognising our unique location near residential communities, and an art competition for secondary school pupils.

It’s also vital that as KQ Liverpool, the City and City Region that we capitalise on Liverpool’s third place in the European Capital of Innovation Awards, so we’ll be actively engaging with the iCapital alumni network and developing our international partnerships, sharing best practice and contributing to thought leadership.

Indeed, we‘ve already visited Grenoble to see their incredible innovation work, from being France’s lead on semi-conductors to combatting climate change.

Reaching this milestone is a proud moment for us but we know there is still much to do to create future generations of innovators here in the city region.

As I said, we’re on a mission.

Southport’s pier is far more than a Victorian relic stretching out into the Irish Sea.

It is the defining feature of the town’s coastline, a symbol of civic pride, and a cornerstone of the local economy that has drawn visitors to Southport for generations.

Long before the age of mass tourism, the idea of a pier at Southport was first mooted in the 1840s as part of early plans to expand the town and better connect it to the wider region. In 1859 the Southport Pier Company was formed and construction began on what would become one of Britain’s most remarkable coastal structures.

Designed by engineer James Brunlees, the pier officially opened on 2 August 1860, a grand Victorian milestone that made Southport one of the first seaside resorts with a true pleasure pier.

Over more than 160 years, the pier has witnessed Southport’s rise as a premier seaside resort, survived storms, changing fashions, and economic upheaval, and remained a constant presence in the town’s collective memory.

Like many coastal landmarks, the pier has faced mounting challenges. Rising maintenance costs, exposure to extreme weather, and the legacy of poor repairs two decades earlier led to its closure in 2022 due to safety concerns.

For residents and businesses alike, that closure was deeply felt. The pier’s absence left a physical and emotional gap along the promenade, underlining just how central it is to Southport’s identity.

Yet Southport’s story is not one of decline; it is one of renewal.

With £20million of funding secured from central government, work is now planned to restore and repair the pier, with reopening expected in 2027.

This investment is about far more than timber and steel. It represents confidence in Southport’s future and recognition of the pier’s role as an economic driver, supporting tourism, hospitality, and seasonal employment across the town.

The restoration of Southport Pier stands as a visible sign of a broader rebirth. Coastal towns like Southport have too often been left behind, particularly after years of austerity that strained local councils and hollowed out public infrastructure. Renewing the pier is part of addressing that imbalance, combining heritage with modern regeneration, and ensuring that historic assets work for today’s communities.

As we get ready this weekend for Lightport, the first of the series of large scale outdoor events in Southport’s year of culture, under the Elegantly Eccentric banner, it’s important to reaffirm Southport’s status as the pre-eminent seaside town in the north west. It’s a magical town, with an identity and strength all of its own. 

The series of cultural happenings throughout Southport in the coming months will show that again and again, and will be testament to the enduring strength of the town’s creative and cultural industries.

For Southport, the pier is far more than a tourist attraction: it is a symbol of civic resilience. Its longevity tells a story of ingenuity and endurance, and its restoration now stands as a powerful signal that Southport’s best days lie ahead.

As the boards are renewed and the promenade comes alive again, the pier will once more be stretching out over water, inviting both locals and visitors to walk into a revitalised seaside future.

As Britain looks forward to years of national renewal, Southport Pier offers a powerful local example.

Rooted in history yet looking forward, its reopening will mark not just the return of an iconic structure, but the reawakening of a town determined to reclaim its place as a thriving, confident seaside destination.

Last week I had the extraordinary opportunity to travel to China as part of a UK cultural delegation on a government trade and cultural mission.

We have a longstanding relationship with China, not least since the Terracotta Warriors came to World Museum, attracting 600,000 visitors and contributing almost £80 million to the Liverpool City Region’s economy.

The visit to Beijing and Shanghai was a fantastic chance to reinforce Liverpool’s historic links with China, including its status as one of the earliest European ports with the oldest and largest Chinese community and its twinning with Shanghai since 1999.

We went out as a 50-strong business delegation, 20 of which were from other UK cultural organisations.

It’s great that the Government recognises the importance of cultural collaboration in driving business. It demonstrates that businesses want to work in places that have a great cultural offer.

While over there, I met with the team at the Shanghai Art Collection Museum and we finalised plans for an exciting new exhibition of Chinese fine art that will open at World Museum this October.

This collaboration brings treasures from one of China’s most dynamic collections straight to our city — something I know will be inspiring for local audiences and visitors alike.

Our work with Chinese cultural institutions reflects Liverpool’s long-standing global connections and our responsibility to represent and engage with the cultures and communities that shape the city today.

In the spirit of reciprocal exchange, we’ve also successfully toured our own exhibitions in China. Art in the Age of Victoria was seen by 300,000 visitors during its tour and Return of the Gods, which we had at World Museum in 2023 to 2024 is currently on a tour of four venues in China and has been seen by half a million people and counting.

Touring exhibitions are an important source of income generation for us, and contribute to supporting our collections, venues and activities, which benefit millions of people each year in our city region and beyond.

Walking through Beijing and Shanghai with museum directors from across the UK — and meeting government and cultural leaders — underscored for me the power of cultural diplomacy.

Museums connect us beyond borders. They help us see our shared humanity in art, history and ideas, and they spark the conversations that make future collaborations possible

I’ve returned to Liverpool energised by new partnerships, fresh perspectives and the thought of seeing the Shanghai Art Collection Museum exhibition come to life at the World Museum later this year.

There’s so much more to explore, share and create together — and I can’t wait for what comes next.

Joanne Anderson, Director of Innervision, and Maleka Egeonu-Roby, Race Equality Hub.

Growing up, I developed a strong sense of justice shaped by community activism and a belief that one day I would go “into business”, despite leaving school without qualifications.

Growing up in Liverpool in the 1980s, we were surrounded by deep inequality but also a strong instinct to look after one another, something I believe is ingrained in Scouse culture. This lived experience shaped my outlook and has driven nearly 30 years of supporting businesses in our city on race equality, alongside completing a business degree in my thirties and more recently a master’s in business Scale-up at Liverpool John Moores University.

According to the Unlocking Opportunity report, Black and ethnically minoritised owned businesses (BEMs) make a major contribution to the UK economy but continue to face persistent barriers to finance and growth.

There are around 250,000 BEMs in the UK contributing £25 billion annually, yet only around 39% receive loan approval, compared with around two-thirds overall, and 28% report making no profit compared with 16% across the wider business population.

In the Liverpool City Region (LCR), this challenge is intensified by weak local data, as Office for National Statistics samples are too small to produce reliable figures on BEMs.

My company, Innervision, secured a commission from the LCR via the Race Equality Hub to support the growth of 20 BEMs through an Account Manager model, as part of Mayor Steve Rotheram’s wider strategy to ensure “no one is left behind”.

I wanted to understand what drives business growth, so I conducted focused research on growth enablers. While the 20 businesses involved were highly educated, with three quarters holding degrees or master’s qualifications, only a quarter had business-related qualifications.

What was missing was practical, trusted support for the realities of growth: managing money, pricing, marketing, winning contracts, fair access to finance, and clearer routes into wider markets and decision-making.

The programme identified clear success factors, including cultural competence, relationship-based coaching, peer learning, financial literacy, strategic leadership, ecosystem integration and catalytic investment.

Innervision Growth Programme Cohort One

The growth outcomes were substantial. Aggregate turnover rose by 32.3% to £1.06m, with 85% of participants reporting growth. Seventeen businesses increased turnover, ten by more than £10,000, and one by 1,229%. Ninety-five per cent grew their customer base, 40% secured new premises, 50% expanded staffing, 90% launched new products or services, and 60% entered new markets.

Closing the support gap for these entrepreneurs could significantly boost the economy: the Race Equality Hub announcement highlights that “addressing race inequalities could add around £300 m to the LCR economy each year.”

Innervision is now delivering a second programme supporting BEMs in the region. Whilst, targeted interventions and trusted support accelerate growth, the real lever for change is access to work and contracts.

In March, Innervision will host a “Meet the Commissioners” event to connect growth-ready businesses directly with buyers. Supporting one another is part of who we are in this region, so if you want to play your part in advancing race equality through meaningful commercial opportunities, please get in touch – info@innervisionconsultancy.co.uk

Nearly 400,000 journeys are taken by bus in our area every single day. They’re how people get to work, to school, to hospital appointments, to see family and friends – or simply to visit some of the wonderful attractions across the whole city region.

But for too long, too many people have been let down by a system that put shareholders before passengers.

For more than 40 years, buses have been run without public accountability - services turning up late or not turning up at all; fares rising year after year; routes being cut with no thought for the communities left isolated as a result.

People have felt they had no voice and no control. I understand that frustration – but all of that is about to change.

That’s why, starting this year, we will become only the second area outside of London to take back control.

By appointing Stagecoach and Go-Ahead to operate our first franchised services in St Helens and the Wirral, we are beginning the most significant transformation of public transport in a generation.

Just like in London, franchising gives us the power to plan routes, fares and timetables around what works for our region - not what works for shareholders. That is what we meant when we said we’d build a London-style, integrated public transport system.

From day one, passengers will benefit from more frequent services, buses running later into the evening, and better connections to hospitals and rail stations. And this is only the beginning.

Just as importantly, franchising allows us to hold operators to account. Through our new Customer Delivery Framework, we are setting clear, enforceable standards across the network.

That means buses turning up on time, services people can rely on, and a system that listens and responds when things go wrong. Every contract will include strict requirements on punctuality, reliability and cleanliness.

This new approach also means better jobs for the people who keep our buses moving. A reliable transport system depends on a workforce that is properly valued, supported and fairly paid - and that principle is central to our plans.

High-quality bus services will form the backbone of a fully integrated public transport system: quicker, simpler and more affordable for everyone – and linked to our new £500m trains, as well as our new ferry ‘cross the Mersey.

We are backing this ambition with unprecedented investment - hundreds of millions of pounds for new depots and a fleet of more than 100 all-electric double-deck buses, supporting our commitment to reach net zero by 2035.

Together with the £500 million investment in publicly owned trains and the commissioning of the first new Mersey Ferry since the 1960s, we are showing how serious we are about putting the public back into public transport.

This marks the start of a new era for buses in the Liverpool City Region - one where passengers come first, communities are better connected, and public transport truly serves the public.

Liverpool City Region does events really brilliantly.

A golden thread runs through our work, intrinsically connecting communities, culture and lived experience with moments of national and international spectacle. And we’re always looking to improve how we devise, host and attract them.

Just last week, the Grand Départ of the 2027 Tour de France was confirmed, with my home city hosting the finale of stage two. It completes a unique triumvirate of major moments for our region, with The Open at Royal Birkdale this summer and UEFA EURO 2028 coming to Everton’s new stadium in July 2028.

My team has been tasked with delivering the cultural programmes around all three and I know they will be brilliant events for our region and for the UK.

Of course, it’s not just the events themselves. One of the great legacies of planning for and hosting the World Boxing Championships last September, is not just the economic impact but the spotlight it shone on our grassroots clubs and the number of unsung heroes operating there which we’ve connected with.

And Liverpool has always been about more than sport. Some of our most memorable events have been those that come from the minds of artists like the giants from Royal de Luxe, Taylor Town and Eurovision in all its glittering glory...these tell the story of our city on an international and yet very human scale.

From Wimbledon and the FA Cup Final to the Grand National, the UK consistently delivers sporting events that capture global attention. We have the operational expertise, the brand reputation and the international trust to host moments that resonate far beyond our borders.

I was delighted to be invited to give evidence at last week’s DCMS inquiry into major events, and to have the opportunity to talk about how we want to do more in our region to attract, grow and develop events and to champion the role of the regions in driving a national strategy, building on the model established by UK Sport.

When cultural events succeed in the UK, they have grown organically. Our most famous festivals – Glastonbury, Edinburgh, Hay-on-Wye – are extraordinary. Someone once had the idea for Glastonbury. Someone once invented Eurovision. Those ideas grew because they were allowed to take risks, to scale and to evolve.

I believe we now have an opportunity to make step changes which will nurture the next generation of major cultural events, built for today’s audiences and tomorrow’s economy.

Across the UK, there is an enormous amount of under-recognised creativity – often grassroots, often volunteer-led, often happening outside the usual centres of power. But there is no national infrastructure to identify promising ideas, invest in producers, and help those ideas grow into events of national or international significance. Events sit squarely within the creative industries, yet we rarely talk about them as entrepreneurial ventures with growth potential which will impact on their places and beyond.

Without the right support, we’re not backing a new generation of event-makers. And without them, the UK’s cultural events landscape risks standing still.

Place matters enormously. The most powerful events are rooted in local identity, history and pride. Cunard’s Three Queens (pictured below) worked because it combined a global brand with Liverpool’s story. Eurovision worked because the city had the confidence, capacity and credibility to host it with warmth and care.

But place does not have to mean immobility. Some events can travel. Others can be deeply rooted but connected nationally – lighting festivals, music programmes, or heritage moments stitched together across regions. Sydney’s Vivid Festival shows what’s possible when ambition, branding and coordination align.

International visitors don’t experience the UK city by city. They experience it as a whole. Our events strategy should reflect that and at the heart of the issue is a simple fact: no one is responsible for cultural events at a national strategic level. Arts funding bodies are not designed for this role, and it shows. Cultural events are often bolted on to sport, tourism, or regeneration strategies, rather than treated as serious drivers of growth, identity and soft power.

We believe the ambition for major events should be national, but that investment and programming must be place‑led — rooted in local strengths, priorities and communities. The fantastic response nationally to the UK Town of Culture competition has shown that places are ready for the challenge.

To realise the ambition of cultural devolution, this approach must be properly funded through coordinated public and private investment, convened by government and delivered in close partnership with Mayoral Combined Authorities and local authorities. Done well, it can drive cultural devolution and move us away from counter‑productive competitive bidding processes.

We know this kind of collaboration works. Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool was delivered through a strong partnership between Liverpool City Council, the BBC and DCMS. The BBC led broadcast delivery, the City Council led city programming and legacy, and DCMS provided strategic oversight and funding. This shared governance model enabled a unified approach to hosting on behalf of Ukraine, underpinned by inclusion, cultural diplomacy and robust equality frameworks — and demonstrated a new way of delivering major international events.

There are still untapped opportunities for major events to shape powerful narratives around identity, pride and place, and to drive prosperity across our regions. In Liverpool, we know events are catalytic moments, not endpoints and I have talked often about how our region could host a centre of excellence to identify new ideas, incubate talent, support scale, and coordinate experiences across the country.

Events bring people together. Events are unique collective experiences, in a world designed ever more for the individual. They also shape how places are perceived. They build confidence, pride and connection.

With tourism levies emerging and growing interest in place-based growth, there is a real opportunity to rethink how we do this – we need to support the creative thinkers and the places where the next generation of cultural events will emerge and ensure that cultural events have a serious, strategic place at the top table.