Increasing population to change face of Bristol
Story by
January 22, 2014
Jeremy Richards
Bristol’s increasing city-centre population is set to change the face of central Bristol over the course of the next two years, according to leading property advisors Jones Lang LaSalle.
Research revealed at its annual South West Market Review, held recently, predicts that an estimated 1,500 new apartments will be built across the South West during 2014 and 2015.
This includes 3,000 new student beds in Bristol alone, which is going to have a major impact on how the city centre develops.
Bristol is behind only Manchester and Birmingham in terms of a rapid rise in city-centre population, with a 30 per cent increase in the last 10 years.
This is part of a global trend. More than half of the world’s population now live in cities (51 per cent) compared to 30 per cent in the 1950s.
That figure is predicted to rise to over 70 per cent by 2050.
Much of this growing city centre population will be made up of students and young professionals.
This shift represents a renaissance for Bristol city centre with a significant rise in services and outlets that serve this community, such as bars, restaurants and convenience stores.
Application figures for 2012/2013 show that the University of Bristol saw the second highest rise in its student intake of all English universities.
Jones Lang LaSalle estimates that the new students moving into Bristol will consume an additional 1.5 million cups of coffee, 3 million pints of beer and 750,000 take-away meals each year.
This presents a huge opportunity for businesses in the hospitality industry looking to meet that demand.
Jeremy Richards, head of the Bristol office at Jones Lang LaSalle, said: “This urban shift is the great theme of our age, and Bristol will not remain untouched by this in the coming years.
“In fact, our growing city centre population and strong economy means the city is well placed to benefit from this trend.”
At the event it was also said that there is rising confidence in the investment market in Bristol.
Jeremy comments:“Investors are looking for good returns and London is such a competitive market that they are now turning to the UK’s thriving regional cities, of which Bristol is one.”
