This Thursday, 1 May 2025, voters across England will participate in the next wave of mayoral elections, in Greater Lincolnshire, Hull and East Yorkshire, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, the West of England, Doncaster, and North Tyneside.
Some of these are brand new authorities, and worth looking at before Sussex's likely turn next year.
What can we learn from Hull & East Yorkshire?
Thank you to always possible associate, Jeremy Taylor, who spotted that in 2023, the Federation of Small Businesses, in partnership with Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce, launched the Small Businesses and Inclusive Growth Manifesto - a locally rooted (but nationally relevant) call to action.
🎯 What is it?
The aim was to create a practical, place-based economic manifesto, developed through listening sessions with hundreds of small business owners across Hull and East Yorkshire. It outlines how small and micro businesses - so often sidelined in big strategic plans - can be core drivers of inclusive economic growth, if they’re properly supported.
It ended up with
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8 core themes, including skills, digital infrastructure, procurement, innovation, transport and climate resilience.
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Evidence-led asks for local and combined authorities, including specific policy interventions.
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A working model for bottom-up economic planning, with small businesses in the lead.
📄 Read the full document:
Small Businesses and Inclusive Growth – Hull & Humber Manifesto
🧠Why was it created?
Because small businesses power the UK economy - especially outside major cities. In the Humber region, they account for over 95% of all firms and a substantial share of local employment and GVA.
But too often, economic strategies are written for and by large institutions, while small firms are consulted late, if at all, and often chaotically.
The manifesto attempts to flip that dynamic. It treats micro businesses, self-employed people, and small employers as the foundation of a resilient, inclusive economy.
💡 Why this matters beyond Hull
For areas like Sussex and Brighton, it raises key questions:
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Are small businesses helping shape the region’s economic priorities?
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Will local procurement, innovation and net zero strategies work with small firms - or work around them?
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Could a similar manifesto help build trust between public leaders and the small business community?
As councils and combined authorities seek inclusive growth, Hull offers an idea: start with the people actually running the shops, studios, warehouses, and workshops.
They already know what’s needed. Someone just has to ask.
How should we do that in Sussex?
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