Our Vision
Working with our communities, we will build a future for the people of Harborough district that gives them the best life chances and opportunities through:
- Community leadership to create a sense of pride in our place
- Promoting health and wellbeing and encouraging healthy life choices
- Creating a sustainable environment to protect future generations
- Supporting businesses and residents to deliver a prosperous local economy
Background
Invest in Harborough District guide
Why Harborough District?
Despite a challenging economic climate nationally in recent years, our business community has shown resilience and our high streets remain vibrant; thanks in part to a focussed and joined-up approach.
A general assessment of data for the Harborough economy shows that the headline characteristics and performance of Harborough’s economy is largely positive. Harborough is a rural Leicestershire district with a population of 98,300 and with 5,350 enterprises in the area. It has amongst the highest economic activity rates, lowest unemployment, skills profile and highest resident average earnings of the LLEP area – all of which are above national averages.
We host a diverse mix of commercial space from headquarter locations for multinational companies right through to incubation space for promising startup companies and SME’s at the Harborough Innovation Centre.
Background
Over the last few years our local economy has been significantly impacted by the ongoing pandemic. The council has supported businesses and residents throughout this period and will continue to drive our economic recovery and growth in the future. A vibrant economy will attract new businesses, which in turn will provide more jobs and opportunities for our residents and encourage further growth and investment across our district. The council will continue to look to improve town centers and local business centers, so that they become high-quality places to live and work, providing opportunities to retain local talent and skills and improve social mobility. By providing local opportunities, supporting businesses and employers, and investing in our town centres we will create places that attract and retain people who want to invest, live, work, and visit our area.
Location
Harborough is regularly mentioned as a top place to live in regional and national surveys and this shows it has growing reputation as a great place to live and work.
The Harborough District is situated in rural south Leicestershire and is 90 mins by road from London and 1 hr from London by train. The main settlements are Market Harborough, Lutterworth and Broughton Astley. The district is characterised by high-quality countryside and attractive settlements, many of which have retained much of their historic character.
HARBOROUGH DISTRICT IS ALSO IN REACHABLE DISTANCE TO FOUR AIRPORTS:
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What Our Entrepreneurs Say
Here’s what our local entrepreneurs have to say about Harborough and its advantages for businesses.
“It’s a growing town in population which means there is a great pool of highly skilled and employable people in the area that may not want to commute to London or the nearby cities”
ELOISE SHELTON – VANILLA RECRUITMENT
“We find that the community wants to support local business and this provides lots of opportunities to grow and be successful in the area. Market Harborough is the perfect fit for us because it is growing as a community and commercially.”
NATALIE BIGGIN – JOSIAH HINCKS
“Market Harborough is where it all started for Joules. I grew up here, our first shop was here, and over the last three decades, we’ve grown here from a small business employing four people to a thriving, multi-channel business with more than 120 UK stores and a fast-growing international presence.”
TOM JOULE – JOULES CLOTHING
