Downtown Manchester in Business recently hosted a live event unlike any seen by our membership before. This event was in the COVID Secure Bright Building in Manchester Science Park. Managed by Bruntwood SciTech, the UK’s leading property provider dedicated to driving the growth of the science and technology sector, the Bright Building has flexible office space available across all floors, ideal for global tech corporates to co-locate with pioneering start-ups – creating a collaborative environment for innovative ideas to develop, and valuable partnerships to form.
The event was sponsored by Sutcliffe Consulting Engineers, a multi-disciplinary firm of structural and civil engineers who have established a high standard of excellence in consulting over the past 35 years. Their core services include; Structural & Civil Engineering, Geotechnical & Environmental Investigations, Building Surveying and Pre Planning Services.
After a brief introductory address from Sutcliffe CEO, Sean Keyes, the audience heard from Leader of Manchester City Council, Sir Richard Leese. Downtown Chief Exec Frank McKenna conducted the interview opening up the discussion on how the city has responded and the plan for economic recovery. Sir Richard explained that industries such as construction have been able to continue throughout to a greater capacity than others that require staff to be on site. Also brought to the discussion was the #UnitedCity campaign and getting people back to working in the city, Northern Powerhouse Projects such as HS2 and Powerhouse Rail, the influence and importance of Metro Mayors and how that structure has worked for northern cities, along with the looming Brexit deadline. Sir Richard signed off commenting that back in March Manchester was the fastest growing economy in the UK, and let’s make sure that in six months time [Manchester is] once again the fastest growing economy in the UK.
A huge thank you to our sponsor Sutcliffe and all the staff at The Bright Building who were incredible hosts who managed to deliver a completely safe environment for our members to work in.
