This report was prepared by the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities (CFE) led by Lamia Kamal-Chaoui, Director. The work was conducted as part of the OECD’s Local Economic and Employment Development (LEED) Programme with support from JPMorgan Chase. The report and underlying project were co-ordinated by Tilde Ussing, Policy Analyst in the OECD Local Employment, Skills and Social Innovation (LESI) Division, under the supervision of Kristine Langenbucher, Deputy Head of Division of the LESI Division. Karen Maguire, Head of the LESI Division, provided overall guidance and comments. The report was drafted by Tilde Ussing (Chapters 1, 3, 4 and 5) and Ada Zakrzewska, OECD, (Chapter 2). Lesley Giles of Work Advance contributed to Chapters 1, 3 and 5. The report benefited from valuable contributions and statistical support from Michela Meghnagi, Economist, LESI Division, and Ulrikke Kristensen, intern, LESI Division. Katrina Baker, Communications Officer, LESI Division, and Jack Waters, Publications Coordinator, CFE, prepared the report for publication.
The OECD team expresses its gratitude to the many stakeholders from the Glasgow City Region and the Scottish and UK Governments who provided input into the report through participating in fact-finding interviews and workshops. These included representatives from ACS Clothing, BAE Systems, City of Glasgow College, Enginuity, Fair Share, Generation UK, Glasgow Centre for Civic Innovation, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, Glasgow City Region Intelligence Hub, Glasgow Clyde College, Glasgow Colleges Regional Board, Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector, Glasgow Economic Leadership Board, Glasgow Jobs and Business, Glasgow Kelvin College, Glasgow Life, Glasgow School of Art, Move on, New College Lanarkshire, Prince’s Trust, Scottish Chamber of Commerce, Scottish Qualification Authority, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, Scottish Funding Council, the Scottish Government’s Employability Division, South Lanarkshire College, University of Glasgow, the UK Department for Work and Pensions, West College Scotland and various representatives from the eight local authorities in the Glasgow City Region.
Special thanks are due to the Glasgow City Region’s Project Management Office, Glasgow City Council and Skills Development Scotland. In particular, Paul Kilby from the Glasgow City Region, Frankie Barrett from Glasgow City Council, and Paul Zealey from Skills Development Scotland supported the OECD throughout the project by facilitating contacts and interviews with stakeholders and providing extensive comments and exchanges throughout the project period. Special thanks are extended to Dominique Frentz, Director for Attractiveness and Employment in the City of Paris, Robin Ashton, Vice Principal at Glasgow Kelvin College, Frankie Barret, Group Manager in Glasgow City Council and Ashleigh McCulloch, Creative Director at the Glasgow Chamber of Commerce for their presentations at the stakeholder validation workshop in Glasgow City in March 2024.
Special thanks are also extended to Alexandra Ingvarsson, Sarah Moreau, and Stephanie Mestrallet, JPMorgan Chase.
The OECD would also like to thank representatives from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Ireland (SOLAS and the Dublin and Cork Education and Training Boards) for contributing to the comparative analysis.