Centre for Cities: Universities are largest international exporter in Exeter, Dundee and Nottingham

• Local universities are larger exporters than legal services in Cardiff and metal manufacturing in Sheffield
• Universities account for over a third of high skilled knowledge jobs in Oxford, Coventry and Cambridge and a large share of these jobs in Stoke, Sunderland and Hull
• London, Oxford and Cambridge combined account for 40 per cent of spin-out firms between 2012-2025

Local universities are the top international exporting sector in cities including Exeter, Dundee, Leicester and Nottingham and are among the largest high skilled “knowledge” sector employers in many parts of the UK, according to new analysis from Centre for Cities.

Government should consider how new restrictions on the university sector like an international student levy could affect economic activity and high skilled jobs in large cities and towns outside the Greater South East in particular, given their ambitions for growth in all parts of the country.

Centre for Cities' latest report, Town and gown: The role of universities in city economies, focuses on four contributions universities make:

• International exports – In most cities and large towns with universities, higher education is among the top ten largest international exporting sectors thanks to the fee-paying international students that universities bring in.

• High skilled “knowledge” jobs – The universities sector is one of the largest high-skilled “knowledge” employers in most large cities and towns.

• City centre regeneration – Universities attract people to live in city centres, focusing economic activity in one place.

• Innovative start-ups – Between 2012 and 2024 universities also generated nearly 2,000 spin-out firms. London, Oxford and Cambridge alone account for 40 per cent of these.

In Exeter, Dundee, Leicester (15 per cent share of exports by value) and Nottingham (8 per cent), universities are the single largest international exporting sector.

Local universities generate a higher share of international exports by value (8 per cent) than legal services (4 per cent) in Cardiff, metal manufacturing in Sheffield (7 per cent and 4 per cent) and business support services in Brighton (6 per cent and 5 per cent).

Universities contribution as high skilled “knowledge” sector employers is greatest in Oxford where universities generate 60 per cent of high-skilled “knowledge” jobs, followed by Coventry (40 per cent) and Cambridge (39 per cent). The two universities in Oxford account for one in six of all jobs in the city – more than computing, scientific and consulting sectors combined.

Local universities' share of high-skilled knowledge jobs is also notably high in places – such as Plymouth (32 per cent), Stoke (31 per cent), Hull (24 per cent) and Sunderland (18 per cent) – with relatively low numbers of high skilled knowledge sector jobs in the private sector.

And by attracting people to city-centre living – places such as Coventry, Liverpool and Nottingham have younger and more densely populated city centres than comparable places – centrally located universities act as catalysts for city centre regeneration, bringing in investment for developments like purpose-built student housing.

Andrew Carter, Chief Executive of Centre for Cities, said:

“Universities' are significant economic assets that are distributed across the country, including in places that have relatively little private sector high-skilled employment or international exports.

“Many universities may be small in national terms, but they are central to their local economies, particularly outside the UK's strongest cities.

“But many UK universities are under financial strain, raising questions about their future. Any changes to higher education policy will not be felt evenly across the country.

“National reforms that weaken the sector risk cutting across the Government's ambitions for delivering growth everywhere.”

ENDS

NOTES

1. Centre for Cities is the leading independent think tank dedicated to improving the economies of the UK's largest cities and towns. It is a charity that works with local authorities, business and Whitehall to develop and implement policy that supports the performance of urban economies. It does this through impartial research and knowledge exchange. For more information, visit https://www.centreforcities.org/about/
2. Town and gown: The role of universities in city economies will be published at 00.01am on Wednesday 3 September at the following URL:
   https://www.centreforcities.org/publication/town-and-gown-the-role-of-universities-in-city-economies/