Supercharging Yorkshire & Humber: Unlocking £38 billion in growth through AI, skills and systems scale integrated planning

Key findings

How many new jobs could Yorkshire and the Humber create by 2030?

252,000 net new jobs by 2030 on the current path (Scenario 1) and 379,000 with AI augmentation (Scenario 2), against an 18-year-old population that stays flat and net migration halving.

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How important are graduates to Yorkshire and the Humber's Industrial Strategy?

55% of employment in the eight Industrial Strategy sectors (the IS-8) is degree-level, against 31% in the rest of the economy, rising to 92% in the 280 occupations most critical to them.

Digital and Technologies (85%), Financial Services (82%), Life Sciences (78%) and Advanced Manufacturing (63%) are the most degree-intensive.

What could AI contribute to Yorkshire and the Humber's economy?

The region’s £38bn share of the UK’s £490bn AI augmentation premium depends on graduate supply and reskilling at scale. Without sufficient skills supply, some of this growth may occur elsewhere.

The AI augmentation scenario. AI is adopted across the workforce, increasing productivity across many occupations and replacing some routine work. All eight Industrial Strategy sectors grow faster than under the current-path scenario.

Which skills shortages could constrain regional growth?

Undergraduate numbers peaked in 2023/24 and taught postgraduate numbers are falling. Each year the region is around 2,160 graduates short in engineering, 900 in computing, 700 in education and 300 in the sciences. Under AI augmentation those gaps widen.

Engineering, computing and education are the fields the plans depend on, and all three are in deficit; engineering intake is down 14% and education 15% over five years.

What role can higher education play in regional economic growth?

Universities can support over 100,000 new jobs (rising to 165k) in the region. The Mayoral plans, and national policy, depend on graduate supply in fields which are already in shortage.

Conclusion and key actions

The report identifies five actions for higher education and other postsecondary providers.

Close the supply deficits and support targeted international student flows

Engineering, science, and education all require action on capacity, completion, and retention.

International recruitment could be targeted towards engineering and science postgraduate programmes aligned to employer needs.

Exposing domestic and international students to current and predicted labour market data can help them make informed choices about courses and employment.

Develop graduates who can work effectively alongside AI

Industries with high AI augmentation potential are already looking for multidisciplinary exposure and are prioritising human skills.

HE needs to respond by offering students exposure to skills and courses outside their core major. Business students could benefit from technical courses, while technical students could benefit from humanities, business and other complementary skills.

Use labour market data to align provision with market demand; collaborate across institutions

There are 11 universities, almost 20 FE colleges (including specialist colleges, excluding sixth forms) and well over 100 independent training institutions across the area.

The scale and power of collaboration and specialistion is immense. There are opportunities to share students, deliver collective courses in areas of low demand, and create specialist provision—all underpinned by strong data on the labour market and employer needs in the region.

Make reskilling part of core lifelong-learning provision

Most of the workforce in 2030 is already in work today, and their roles are changing faster than new graduate cohorts can meet the need.

There are large numbers of existing workers in Y+H who will need to, or want to, work in new and growing areas of the IS-8 in the region.

Short, stackable courses funded through the devolved Adult Skills Fund, or the new LLE, can reach them now.

Partner with local employers

Apprenticeships and experiential learning can be developed through employer partnerships, moving beyond large companies to include medium-sized and even entrepreneurial ventures.

Co-designed curricula can help retain talent in the region and connect graduates to the jobs identified in the growth plans.

Embedding experiential learning, at scale, within the curricula alongside skills development courses can help develop these capabilities.