What is so good about Sheffield City Centre?

[Cyclone]

Agreed and a lot of Sheffieldes who have to travel to other cities to spend money in higher quality stores.

 

Hopefully this will soon change

 

For example?

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:12 ----------

 

Like it or not, Sheffield and the whole of South Yorkshire is the low pay capital of Britain. Well paid jobs are in shorter supply than across the Pennines or just up the M1.

 

Fortunately we have cars, and it's entirely possible to commute to both Leeds and Manchester!

I can't dispute that Leeds has a higher concentration of better paid jobs, and it does in fact have a slightly higher disposable income measure, but we're not talking about by very much, as the figures have shown.

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:14 ----------

 

I was shocked by the state of the centre on Sunday. Witnessed two people openly dealing drugs, in the middle of Fargate, without a care in the world. Got asked for money 15 times, and the whole place was intimidating and unpleasant, with gangs of people openly using drugs and drinking sitting around benches.

 

Why would anyone bother shopping there? I'd never take kids to witness drug dealing like that - so openly and brazenly. The city centre needs sorting out pretty quickly - it's no wonder businesses are struggling,. It's a horrible environment to be in.

 

Well, I think it was probably this post that they thought was lacking empathy for the homeless.

[pss60]

For example?

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:12 ----------

 

 

Fortunately we have cars, and it's entirely possible to commute to both Leeds and Manchester!

I can't dispute that Leeds has a higher concentration of better paid jobs, and it does in fact have a slightly higher disposable income measure, but we're not talking about by very much, as the figures have shown.

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:14 ----------

 

 

Well, I think it was probably this post that they thought was lacking empathy for the homeless.

Leeds and West Yorkshire generally have higher costs of living though. The average house price in West and North Yorkshire is considerably higher than for South Yorkshire.Working in Leeds but living in say Harrogate means a bigger mortgage to pay for a house buyer.

Edited June 20, 2018 by pss60

[Cyclone]

They DO have higher costs of living don't they. That's a bad thing isn't it. Leeds is not the fabled land of hope and glory.

In fact, it might be possible that some people live in Sheffield where the cost of living is lower, but work in Leeds!

[paula4sheff]

For example?

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:12 ----------

 

 

Fortunately we have cars, and it's entirely possible to commute to both Leeds and Manchester!

I can't dispute that Leeds has a higher concentration of better paid jobs, and it does in fact have a slightly higher disposable income measure, but we're not talking about by very much, as the figures have shown.

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 09:14 ----------

 

 

Well, I think it was probably this post that they thought was lacking empathy for the homeless.

 

As the begging thread goes into in detail- we aren't talking about the homeless, and it's sad that people are still associating the begging and anti social behaviour that blights the cwntre with homelessness.

 

Without derailing the thread too much, and for clarity- 99 per cent of people asking for mobey are not homeless and people giving to them male thw work of charitiles so much harder.

Again, without derailing too much there may well be future changes that make giving to beggars an offence....

 

 

On topic- I visited Leeds city centre at thr weekend. The difference is very stark. It's like a different world. So much more pleasant.

[Cyclone]

How so? I was there recently and I found it to be much like every other English city centre.

There are certainly beggars, and also presumably genuine homeless people, asleep at the side of the pavement as you walk up from the train station.

I don't find the shops to be any more interesting or useful than in Sheffield.

[pss60]

They DO have higher costs of living don't they. That's a bad thing isn't it. Leeds is not the fabled land of hope and glory.

In fact, it might be possible that some people live in Sheffield where the cost of living is lower, but work in Leeds!

Of course they do. It's easy to get on a train from Sheffield or the rest of South Yorkshire to Leeds or Manchester (though not so easy from somewhere like Barnsley to Manchester) for the higher wages and still have the South Yorkshire costs. Nobody said Leeds was a land of milk and honey, but there are more career opportunities there than in Sheffield. Even after paying their higher bills, disposable income is still higher in Leeds than in Sheffield.

Edited June 20, 2018 by pss60

[Cyclone]

I forget what point you're even trying to make tbh. It was originally that Sheffielders had less money to spend I think, supported by the economic contribution figures, but when we looked at disposable income the gap was considerably narrower. Then there was a bit about Sheffield only having 3 high paying employers (although how the NHS and universities were identified as high paying I don't know), when I pointed out quite a few other international and national organisations you simply said that Leeds had more... As if that somehow made your original point correct.

 

---------- Post added 20-06-2018 at 13:13 ----------

 

Is the relationship that simple? I'm sure there is a link, but GVA is not the same as disposable income or relative wealth (as the quote I made earlier points out).

 

---------- Post added 14-06-2018 at 12:07 ----------

 

GDHI for Sheffield City Region £15,340

That's actually very comparable with the majority of the country outside the affluent South East+London.

 

---------- Post added 14-06-2018 at 12:14 ----------

 

Interestingly, Manchester, which had one of the highest GVA values has one of the lowest GDHI values at £13,184.

Leeds for 2016 £16814, Sheffield £15057. A measurable difference, but not as large as the GVA might have implied.

For reference, Nottingham £12323, Liverpool £14538, York £18070...

 

So individuals wealth (as measured by disposable income) varies quite differently to the economic production of an area.

 

And looking at the GDHI figures for the cities alone is clearly not good enough, or Manchester would be some backwards little town...

[paula4sheff]

How so? I was there recently and I found it to be much like every other English city centre.

There are certainly beggars, and also presumably genuine homeless people, asleep at the side of the pavement as you walk up from the train station.

I don't find the shops to be any more interesting or useful than in Sheffield.

 

A number of things really - but the main thing is a feeling of aspiration and of a city making an effort. It feels like they are keen to attract shoppers and give them a decent experience - while Sheffield seems intent on driving people away.

 

I was struck by the many shops, but also by the interesting bars, cafes and restaurants too. The indoor market is good, the various small shopping centres that are scattered around are good, and it just has a feeling of a city on the up, rather than on the way down.

 

There are beggars yes - but nowhere near the level of Sheffield. A standard walk through town sees you asked around 10-15 times in Sheffield. I spent all day in Leeds city centre and was asked three times. That's a noticeable difference.

 

Leeds, to my view, is a vibrant city centre. Sheffield is not, sadly.

 

Having said that - I view Sheffield as a better place to live, for many other reasons, but vast and rapid improvement of the centre is needed if it wants to attract even half of the visitors Leeds quite clearly does.

[Cyclone]

I actually saw more rough sleepers in Leeds than I've seen in Sheffield. But maybe we're both suffering from confirmation bias.

 

Our city centre could do with improvements, bars and cafe's and late opening of things, those would be welcome.

The entire country could do better to help the homeless.

[pss60]

I actually saw more rough sleepers in Leeds than I've seen in Sheffield. But maybe we're both suffering from confirmation bias.

 

Our city centre could do with improvements, bars and cafe's and late opening of things, those would be welcome.

The entire country could do better to help the homeless.

 

The bigger the population and conurbation area, the greater the number of rough sleepers. And it is a fact that since 2010, the number of beggars and rough sleepers has soared in this country. Before then, they were a rare sight. Besides, we know why that has come about.