Ten-year plan to boost county's international growth

By Tim Aldred

01 Nov 2022

The Lancashire Enterprise Partnership has published a ten-year plan designed to boost the red rose county's economy by improving engagement with international markets.

The Lancashire Internationalisation Strategy focuses on boosting five areas: exports, foreign direct investment (FDI), capital investments, innovation, and the visitor economy.

The underpinning belief is that locally-owned exporters tend to be more resilient businesses and foreign-owned companies in the county are often more productive and pay higher wages.

The full 88-page strategy, and separate 20-page executive summary, detail how Lancashire can significantly grow its economy through a more proactive, targeted and integrated approach to international markets, and by promoting dynamic investment opportunities to global investors.

Among the key recommendations are that Lancashire promotes itself globally as a high-tech, multi-disciplinary and innovation-based testbed. This is based on the county’s proliferation of world-class university R&D assets and industry-led centres of excellence, many of which are directly aligned to the needs of several fast-growth sectors.

Examples cited include cyberspace and telecoms, sustainable construction, green energy and cleantech, drones and future flight, 5G and private networks, digital health and medtech, agritech, and decarbonised transport.

The report's five key areas of interest - described as the 'pillars' of the strategy - have been used to benchmark and assess how the county’s existing and emerging sector strengths, key assets and resources relate to current global trends and anticipated international demand.

This analysis has then informed a suite of short, medium and long-term actions which are designed to make Lancashire’s economy more globally active, internationally competitive, and generate more overseas investment.

Many of the opportunities highlighted are directly linked to Lancashire’s core industrial sectors. These include aerospace and advanced manufacturing, energy and low carbon technologies, food production, tourism, and the digital industries. In addition, the strategy identifies global growth potential in a range of emerging markets, such as cybersecurity and defence, future mobility, and health Innovation.

For each key sector, and for each of the five pillars, there is extensive qualitative and quantitative evidence which underpins the report’s strategic recommendations. This includes the results of extensive consultations with Lancashire business owners and other stakeholder, global market intelligence, competitor analysis, and trend modelling, which is pertinent to the Lancashire economy.

The strategy then sets out a series of sector-specific baselines, recommended tactics to increase international engagement, and potential growth projections.

Debbie Francis, chair of the LEP said: “This document is the first deep dive we’ve done into Lancashire’s global economic capacity and capabilities for many years. But as well as a thorough assessment of where the county is now, both in a post-Covid and post-Brexit context, what’s really exciting is the roadmap it sets out for Lancashire’s future internationally.

“That includes the international opportunities being driven by both our traditional industrial strengths and through numerous emerging markets, together with our growing cluster of word-class R&D assets and in-demand, cross-cutting technology specialisms.

When you also consider that UK businesses who export tend to thrive far more than those who don’t, and foreign companies who locate here are generally more productive, more innovative, and pay higher wages, you can see how becoming more globally engaged could help us rapidly scale-up many sections of Lancashire’s economy."

You can download a copies of the full Lancashire Internationalisation Strategy and the Executive Summary here.

Enjoyed this? Read more from Tim Aldred

Latest news

1

Three weekly domestic waste collection considered in plans Waste recycling Blackpool

Three weekly domestic waste collection considered in plans

01 Jul 2025

2

Graham Engineering confirms acquisition to a2e Industries Graham Engineering

Graham Engineering confirms acquisition to a2e Industries

01 Jul 2025

3

Training 2000 celebrate 'Good' rating by Ofsted Training 2000

Training 2000 celebrate 'Good' rating by Ofsted

01 Jul 2025

4

Fox Group acquires J Fisher and Sons Colin Fisher, Paul Fox CEO and Gary Fisher.

Fox Group acquires J Fisher and Sons

01 Jul 2025

5

Beever and Struthers strengthen leadership team with new partners Dean Curtis and Joe Diston

Beever and Struthers strengthen leadership team with new partners

01 Jul 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
LBV123 July/August Launch Event
Lancashire Business View magazine launch
Networking
16 Jul 2025

LBV123 July/August Launch Event

Burnley

08:30 - 10:30

Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025
BEC 315 X 315 Px
Networking
25 Sep 2025

Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025

Blackpool Football Club, Blackpool, FY1 6HX

08:30 - 13:00

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Business Bike Club – July
Chamber Logo1.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
01 Jul 2025 - 01 Jul 2025

Business Bike Club – July

Various, Lancaster, LA

08:00 - 09:30

Chamber Breakfast Networking – July
Chamber Logo1.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
02 Jul 2025 - 02 Jul 2025

Chamber Breakfast Networking – July

St John's Hospice, Slyne Road, Lancaster, LA2 6ST

08:00 - 10:00

The Marketing Metrics that Matter – July 4
LBV Hub Seminars
04 Jul 2025 - 04 Jul 2025

The Marketing Metrics that Matter – July 4

Door4 Office, Burnley Wharf, Burnley, BB11 1JG

08:30 - 11:00

Tri-Site Survey Equipment Showcase
unnamed (2).jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
09 Jul 2025 - 09 Jul 2025

Tri-Site Survey Equipment Showcase

Crow Wood Hotel, Burnley, BB12 0RT

09:30 - 16:00

Chamber Summer BBQ
LBV Hub Social
17 Jul 2025 - 17 Jul 2025

Chamber Summer BBQ

The Borough, Dalton Square, Lancaster, LA1 1PP

17:30 - 20:00

Preston Tech Connection: Web3 is Dead. Or is It?
July Longer Banner.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
29 Jul 2025 - 29 Jul 2025

Preston Tech Connection: Web3 is Dead. Or is It?

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

18:00 - 19:30

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: July
Longer July Banner.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
31 Jul 2025 - 31 Jul 2025

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: July

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Cumbria Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880461633-4862066883-1-original.20241022-110415.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
19 Sep 2025 - 19 Sep 2025

Cumbria Business Expo 2025

Carlisle Racecourse, Carlisle, CA2 4TS

09:00 - 15:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV122 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin