By David Kidney
The West Midlands Combined Authority is asking us all for our views before producing a first Local Growth Plan. The Combined Authority has launched the West Midlands Futures Green Paper and you ought to consider having your say about what needs to be in the Growth Plan.
Life sciences can be a major driver of inclusive and transformative growth in the West Midlands. The life sciences sector is not only about health—it’s about wealth, innovation, and resilience. If we want truly inclusive growth, we must position the West Midlands as a national leader in health and life sciences.
Local Growth Plans are the Government’s idea. It plans to produce a National Industrial Strategy soon and it wants local authorities like the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to produce Local Growth Plans to complement that national strategy but also reflect regional strengths and variations.
To give WMCA credit, the West Midlands Futures Green Paper is actively trying to generate a conversation with us all about our region’s long-term priorities.
Growth is described as “the golden thread” running through the Green Paper. And by “growth”, WMCA means inclusive growth, what the Mayor calls “Growth for Everyone”.
In the West Midlands, we have what it takes to be an economically prosperous region in terms of our size and scale, the youthfulness, diversity and dynamism of our population, our record on investment and innovation, and our connectivity.
The West Midlands’ economy is not yet at its full potential. A £77bn economy, 3.5% of the national economy, would be boosted by £12bn if productivity were just raised to the UK average. And the Green Paper is very positive that we can do this. As an accompanying paper called The Theory of Growth says, “Economic transformation is possible”.
Life sciences—and particularly HealthTech—can be a cornerstone of the West Midlands’ growth strategy. The region already boasts strong research institutions, a growing medtech ecosystem, and NHS partnerships ripe for innovation. By prioritising life sciences in the Local Growth Plan, the Combined Authority could unlock high-value jobs, support an aging population, and leverage digital innovation to drive both wellbeing and economic productivity.
This is especially relevant under the “public service innovation and people and skills” pillar. Health innovation doesn’t just improve lives—it creates new career paths, attracts investment, and can anchor local manufacturing and R&D capacity. Aligning the Growth Plan with our region’s health innovation strengths ensures we’re building an economy that’s both future-facing and fair.
The Green Paper sets out four big areas of change on the horizon and how regional stakeholders are beginning to respond to them:
- The first West Midlands Growth Plan
- A regional spatial development strategy with key investment sites
- Public service innovation and people and skills
- A new five-year plan for net zero.
In each area, the Green Paper sets out a handful of questions, there are 20 questions in all. Your opinions about the direction of travel and how we seize the many opportunities we have before us could influence the final content of the Combined Authority’s Growth Plan.
But you will have to hurry if you want to take part. The closing date for responses is 8th June.
To have your say, visit the Combined Authority’s website: https://tinyurl.com/7cz6v27e
And just to confirm, yes, I have responded, drawing attention to the key HealthTech considerations.
David Kidney, Executive Chair, West Midlands Health Technologies Cluster
