Switch On To Swindon 

New business initiative launched to promote town's strengths

 

The Swindon business community came together this week to mark the official launch of Switch On To Swindon, a new initiative designed to highlight the strengths of Swindon as a great place to live, work, invest in and visit.

 

 

The event was held at Swindon Audi and the new scheme aims to unite businesses, organisations and individuals across the area in a powerful network to change perceptions of the town and raise its profile.

 

The initiative is supported by Swindon Borough Council but very much led by local businesses. The official launch event introduced the campaign to people from across Swindon and demonstrated how a similar campaign helped Doncaster grow and support their economy.

 

Swindon is ranked as the seventh most productive economy in the UK as well as having the fifth highest employment rate.

 

 

Swindon Fact File

- The UK’s 7th most productive economy with £58,514 GVA per worker compared to the national average of £53,666
- 5th highest employment rate in the UK
- Between 2010 and 2016 Swindon saw the second largest increase of any UK city in its share of private sector Knowledge Intensive Business Services jobs.
- Nationally significant clusters of high-growth businesses delivering £6.6 billion GVA economic output
- Swindon has the UK’s 7th largest automotive manufacturing and advanced engineering cluster
- Swindon has the UK’s 9th largest employment cluster in Health and Life Sciences in the top quartile nationally for banking insurance and professional services
- Swindon is in the top quartile nationally for creative and digital technology companies
- Swindon is the UK centre of excellence for hydrogen fuel cell technology
- 4:1 ratio of private:public sector jobs
- In the past decade, the number of business start-ups has increased by twice the national average.
- 281 businesses per 10,000 population
- The ratio of house prices to earnings is one of the best in the UK
Swindon has the UK’s highest concentration of foreign-owned businesses (19%)
- In 2014 the number of patents granted per 100,000 of population was 7.88, compared to a national average of fewer than 4.