Solihull is one of the best places in the country for work/life balance. This is according to research commissioned by a company that markets coworking spaces to remote workers. They may not have the gravitas of the Office of National Statistics, but their methodology seems sound - looking at how satisfied, happy, or anxious respondents are about their lives, the availability of homes with gardens and access to parks.
Solihull scores well on every metric, and the report notes the balance between ‘urban connectivity and a serene lifestyle’ – or ‘Urbs in Rure’ as you may wish to put it.
They also noted our strong economy and higher than average salaries, and I was particularly gratified by the mentions of our excellent schools and green spaces.
We have 17 Green Flag parks in our borough, providing wonderful places to walk and play or just sit and enjoy nature. We’re very proud of them, but it takes a lot of work to keep them looking their best, so I would like to take the opportunity to thank our parks team, and Love Solihull, our environmental initiative, along with all the volunteers who give up their time to help maintain their local parks for everyone to enjoy.
I mentioned that the study noted our strong economy and we continue to keep that growing, by looking to the future: recently I made a rather exciting announcement that we will be playing host to a major Esports event in March 2025 at the bpPulse Arena at the NEC. Esports are a rapidly growing and already multi-billion pound industry, so establishing Solihull as a great place for events like this could be really important in the coming years, I am delighted that we’ll be hosting and looking forward to welcoming the competitors and spectators to our borough next year.
Solihull also scored highly in terms of the number of people able to work remotely for at least part of the week. I don’t place as high a value on this as does a company that exists to rent space to workers, for obvious reasons. However, I do think it can be very valuable in helping people to find a balance, for instance, cut down on their commute, which can have a positive environmental impact as well as the benefits to wellbeing.
There is a balance to be struck for most people. Collaborative working is always going to be best in person, and some meetings are just more effective when they take place face-to-face. However, many aspects of modern work, thanks to technology, can be done just as effectively remotely.
Technology as a driver for economic growth has a long history in our region, and that is something the West Midlands Growth Company is seeking to harness and build on with its new campaign – It Starts Here. Take a look at the website and the very slick video to find out more, but in essence the campaign seeks to attract inward investment to our region by focusing on our history, and future, of technological innovation and global significance as a centre of manufacturing and invention. I am very passionate about this, as anyone who regularly reads this message will know, so I’m very pleased to see the campaign draw attention to this incredibly important aspect of our region.
This week is Care Leavers Week. I’ve talked a lot in previous editions of this message about the work we’re doing to support young people in Solihull who are leaving care through the Corporate Parenting Board and our partnerships with local businesses that benefit care leavers so much. There is also the national Care Leaver Covenant, which offers significant opportunities at a crucial time in these young people’s lives. Look out on the Council’s social media channels for more throughout the week.
Lots of consultations running at the moment.
Try and participate in them if they are relevant to you.
We want feedback on our Additional Needs Strategy and our work for children with SEND across the borough. Please fill in the relevant survey here to let us know how we’re doing.
We’re seeking views on changing the way we charge for day opportunities in adult social care. We want to ensure fairness across the system, by making the person’s level of need the main consideration, the proposed rates would reflect individual circumstances. We also want to offer people more choice and flexibility by introducing half day and hourly rates for our day opportunities. You can fill that survey in here.
There’s also a consultation running about proposed improvements to the active travel route between Knowle and Solihull.
Finally, to return to my theme of Solihull as a great place to live and work, Visit Solihull and Love Solihull have teamed up to launch a photo competition to find the best photographers across the borough to capture Solihull’s beautiful parks, green spaces and heritage sites. To find out how to enter and view the terms and conditions please take a look at the Visit Solihull blog.
Have a great week everyone
Councillor Ian Courts
Leader of Solihull Council