Despite academic scepticism, cluster policies remain popular with policymakers. This paper evaluates the causal impact of a flagship UK technology cluster programme. I build a simple framework and identify effects using difference-in-differences and synthetic controls on rich microdata. I...

This paper performs a mixed-methods analysis of place-branding strategies developed in the 'Tech City' cluster initiative in Inner East London, drawing on ethnographic material, semi-structured interviews and visual content. Using Jessop's concept of the spatial imaginary, we explore key...

Innovative, high-technology activities are seen as motors of development, with knock-on effects throughout their local economies. Such activities tend to organise networks that span beyond atomized firms, creating 'ecosystems' of mutual dependence as well as competition. However, such ecosystems...

Despite academic scepticism, cluster policies remain popular with policymakers. This paper evaluates the causal impact of a flagship UK technology cluster programme. I build a simple framework and identify effects using difference-in-differences and synthetic controls on rich microdata. I...

The digital industries cluster known as 'Silicon Roundabout' has been quietly growing in East London since the 1990s. Now rebranded 'Tech City', it is now the focus of huge public and government attention. National and local policymakers wish to accelerate the local area's development: such...

A growing wave of co-location programmes promises to boost growth for entrepreneurs and young firms. Despite great public and policy interest we have little idea whether such programmes are effective. This paper categorises accelerators and incubators within a larger family of co-location...

This article examines the Coalition Government’s ‘Tech City’ proposals for East London. The Government wants to support the nascent tech cluster in East London, encourage inward investment, and develop the post-2012 Olympic Park into a high-tech hub. After examining the...

The digital industries cluster known as 'Silicon Roundabout' has been quietly growing in East London since the 1990s. Now rebranded 'Tech City', it is now the focus of huge public and government attention. National and local policymakers wish to accelerate the local area's development: such...