Morning, Friday, 3rd July 2026
Online
The conference will focus on next steps for regional autonomy and partnership working in Greater Manchester.
With the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill expected to receive Royal Assent shortly, the conference will bring together stakeholders and policymakers to discuss implications for Greater Manchester as new powers are implemented, including in areas such as skills and employment support, and emerging fiscal flexibilities such as visitor levies, as well as approaches to using increased flexibility in central government funding.
Discussion will consider priorities for the mayoralty in delivering the Greater Manchester Strategy 2025-35, including strategic governance and the management of expanded responsibilities, alongside implications of funding certainty for planning and delivery, and the institutional capacity required to support implementation and sustain growth across the city region.
Investment, innovation & productivity
With the expansion of the Greater Manchester Good Growth Fund to £2bn, sessions will explore how its ambitions can be translated into the acceleration of regeneration, attracting private investment and driving long‑term productivity growth across the region - including through collaboration with bodies such as the National Wealth Fund. This also includes priorities for deploying the fund to maximise commercial, community, innovation and employment benefits.
Delegates will also consider how the fund and wider financing initiatives can best be used to strengthen the region’s innovation ecosystem, including support for life sciences and digital sectors. Approaches to improving routes from research to commercialisation will also be discussed, including the role of innovation zones, spin‑outs and entrepreneurial firms in enhancing the city region’s global attractiveness to talent, investors and growing enterprises.
Transport integration & regional connectivity
The way forward for further integrating local rail services into the Bee Network will be discussed, including priorities for improving regional connectivity, service reliability, and affordability. Discussion will also assess the role of bus franchising in supporting coordination across transport modes, alongside approaches to aligning services with the needs of places across the region, and strategic considerations for how transport reform can support wider economic development across Greater Manchester. Next steps for major transport developments, including Northern Powerhouse Rail, will also be considered.
Neighbourhood health, skills & delivery coordination
Further discussion will focus on ongoing strategies and reform to health services through neighbourhood‑based delivery models, drawing on early lessons from the rollout of the Live Well programme and the emerging national direction set out in the Neighbourhood Health Framework.
Attendees will assess approaches to collaboration between local government, the NHS and voluntary sector partners, alongside the capacity and governance arrangements needed to support delivery at scale.
The agenda will examine priorities for strengthening alignment between skills provision and labour market demand, including initiatives to develop clearer pathways into regionally targeted roles and high-potential industries, with consideration of the Greater Manchester Baccalaureate, the second cycle of the Local Skills Improvement Plan and the potential scope for devolved adult skills funding. Attendees will consider approaches to addressing challenges around productivity, skills shortages and attainment, as well as the role of partnerships with national bodies such as Skills England in influencing workforce development and employment outcomes over the longer term.
Planning, land use, connectivity & regeneration
With changes underway in how place‑based growth and regeneration are planned and delivered across Greater Manchester, further areas for discussion include strategic connectivity, regeneration priorities and delivery mechanisms. The planned agenda will consider the operation of the Places for Everyone plan as the statutory spatial framework guiding housing, employment, land and infrastructure decisions, alongside practicalities for ensuring targeted funding and community engagement in major developments.
Planned sessions will also explore the use of Mayoral Development Corporations to accelerate delivery, unlock complex sites and support major regeneration, and assess how new planning, land assembly and infrastructure powers introduced through the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 can support certainty, pace and long‑term placemaking across the city region.
