COVID-19 and changing economic geographies
As vaccine programmes gather pace we cautiously look forward to some end in sight to the havoc COVID-19 has played with lives and livelihoods. With the UK budget just a couple of weeks away, the economic impact of the virus and the support needed for individuals and organisations, is under renewed scrutiny. At the Institute of Place Management, we are also concerned about place-specific effects and local recovery plans, as data has already shown that some places are more impacted than others.
In this extended webinar (10th March), we will be discussing what the post-COVID prognosis looks like - is the economy "poised like a coiled-spring" as suggested by Andy Haldane, the Bank of England's Chief Economist, or will the UK "be among the last, if not the last, of the high-income economies to regain its pre-pandemic size" as predicted by Adam Posen, President of the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
No doubt the answer lies somewhere in between and we will be joined by two economists, Mark Gregory (Director, Centre for Towns and Chief Economist at EY) and Christian Spence (Head of Future Economies Analytics, Manchester Metropolitan University) to discuss the economic outlook, the budget and what this might mean for bouncing back, levelling up, and building back better.
We will also explore the uneven impact COVID-19 has within places. Firstly, Diane Wehrle (Marketing and Insights Director, Springboard) will discuss trends and variations in footfall on different town and city types during the pandemic.
Kay Buxton (Executive Director, Paddington Partnership) will then examine the impact of Covid-19 on a local scale, providing the ground evidence from her work with both Marble Arch and Paddington Business Improvement Districts.
Finally, Neil Wild (Owner, Wild Property Consultancy) will then analyse the effects of shifts caused by Covid-19, discussing the changing demand for property in centres and how centres are utilising empty retail space.
The event will conclude with a half an hour round table discussion chaired by IPM Co-Chair Professor Cathy Parker to cover off any questions you may have for our panel of speakers.
This event will take place on 10th March, 3.00-4.30pm, via Zoom webinar
This event is open to all IPM and BID Foundation members only, click here to book your spot. If you already have a question(s) in mind, please click here to submit it in advance of the event
About the author
Formed in 2006, the Institute of Place Management is the international professional body that supports people committed to developing, managing and making places better.