“The UK government is committed to levelling up across the whole of the United Kingdom to ensure that no community is left behind, particularly as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.” gov.uk
This meeting discussed what it would mean to use differences in wellbeing and wellbeing inequalities to inform the levelling up agenda and associated investments, explicitly and deliberately taking it beyond a focus on the economic factors of productivity and employment.
Speakers shared evidence on what wellbeing looks like in different parts of the UK, what place based factors matter for wellbeing and how wellbeing can be pragmatically incorporated into the government’s approach to levelling up.
Meeting was chaired by Jon Cruddas, MP. Speakers included:
- Dr. Maria Cotofan, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE (download handout 1 and handout 2)
- Dr. Matthew Agarwala, Bennett Institute for Public Policy, Cambridge University
- Matt Leach, Chief Executive, Local Trust
- Si Chun Lam, Insight Development Manager, place and public sector transformation, Coventry City Council
Download the minutes here and the slide presentations from Dr Matthew Agarwala, Dr Maria Cotofan and Si Chun Lam