Cities anywhere in the world can boost economic growth by emulating Sunderland’s example – and going smart.

What’s the link between virtual ski slopes and self-driving 40-tonne trucks? It may not seem obvious, but both are part of Sunderland’s drive to be the UK’s smartest city.

Sunderland in northeast England has a history of innovation. Once a national centre of glassmaking, it has also been home to shipbuilding and coal mining industries. But as these declined in the last century, Sunderland has faced deprivation and disadvantage. According to Cities Outlook 2019, Sunderland had some of the highest levels of digital disconnection in the UK. So that year, city council chief executive Patrick Melia launched an ambitious City Plan. Its goal: to position Sunderland as one of the world’s smartest cities, while leaving no-one and nowhere behind.

Sunderland is the first council to launch a project to create its own 5G network, offering ultra-fast connectivity of one gigabit per second. It’s the foundation on which the city’s smart place ambitions are built. And as a result, new business in the city is booming. In this blog you’ll see how.

5G: boosting an already vibrant automotive sector

Sunderland has long been the UK’s manufacturing base for Nissan cars. Now, thanks to the city’s 5G investment, it’s been possible to create 5G CAL: a testbed in Connected Automated Logistics delivered in 2022. This is where the 40-tonne truck comes in. Amid the context of a Europe-wide shortage of qualified truck drivers, Nissan were struggling to recruit reliable supply of key staff. This led directly to the idea of developing a driverless programmable vehicle, capable of transporting car parts from supplier hub Vantec, to Nissan’s factory. ‘Last mile’ delivery innovations like this can promise significant cost savings to UK manufacturing, which is reliant on complex and synchronous supply chains. Nissan’s presence in the city is directly and indirectly responsible for 28,000 jobs. The 5G CAL initiative deepens the firm’s roots, strengthening Sunderland’s digital ecosystem and attracting new investment and talent.

This £4.9 million project has received £2.4 million in funding from the UK’s £30 million 5G Create competition. And in 2021, Nissan unveiled ‘Nissan EV36Zero’: a plan to create a £1 billion flagship electric vehicle hub, creating an EV manufacturing ecosystem in the region. Nissan will invest £432 million to produce a new-generation all-electric vehicle in the UK, creating over 900 new jobs in the city and more than 4,500 in the UK supply chain.

Future homes for tech workers

In recent years, Sunderland has suffered from a declining and ageing population. During the decade between 2011 and 2021, census data shows Sunderland was one of only three local authority areas in the North East to see resident numbers decline.

But this tide is now turning. Going smart is attracting new workers. And encouraging young people to stay. Improved employment opportunities are drawing skilled people. They need homes – and smart homes are even more tempting. More than £1.5 billion of investment in housing stock has been committed to Sunderland over the next 10-15 years. Sunderland will create 1,000 city centre homes for a community of 2,500 people, and 1 million square feet of offices and workspace. In 2021, the city launched its Future Living Expo, showcasing homes of the future where appliances and devices such as thermostats and lights can be responsively controlled from anywhere with an internet connection. Some of the smartest homes in the UK will be in Sunderland, at its Riverside Sunderland urban core transformation.

A revolution in retail

Sunderland’s talented workers also want ways to enjoy their time off. On the high street, ubiquitous 5G will allow retailers to provide sales experiences unavailable in ordinary places. Hays Travel is a major local employer; thanks to 5G, in the near future it will be possible to showcase holiday destinations in high-street travel agents’ using virtual reality headsets. So potential customers can ski down a virtual mountainside at a resort they’re considering, or take a dip in a virtual pool.

And a gateway to gaming

In February 2022, British Esports (BE) announced that its National Esports Performance Campus would open in Sunderland. With a need for low-latency, superfast connectivity, BE said that the city’s focus on 5G and digital technology was a major factor in their decision. The Esports industry now contributes over £100m annually to the UK economy, with that figure rising fast.

Opening doors through education

Academia is growing fast, too. And it’s bringing new opportunities to the students as well as local institutions. Embracing smart education demonstrates a commitment to innovation and attracts more students and faculty. By integrating 5G technology, educational institutions can prepare students for the future demands of a tech-driven workforce. Sunderland College’s Bede building has enjoyed a total refurbishment, with the addition of a 360-degree Immersive Visualisation dome. This will allow students to train in virtual reality environments, establishing a pipeline of talent for many years to come.

One of the earliest City Plan initiatives was bringing superfast Wi-Fi to Hudson Road primary school, ensuring pupils have access to digital equipment and skills from the get-go. The pupils and students in Sunderland’s schools and colleges are gaining the experience needed for the jobs of the future. And with Sunderland University now a 5G Campus, they’ll be able to stay in the city for their undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Moving into professional roles locally, reversing outward migration and becoming a beacon for other young families.

Bringing in value. In the billions.

Can we put figures on the value of all this? The national digital infrastructure platform City Fibre estimates an impressive economic impact, with £1 billion in Gross Value Added from 5G services. £395 million from the Internet of Things. And £186 million from Smart City initiatives like traffic management systems and street lighting.

Flexible working productivity uplifts are expected to exceed £25 million. And Sunderland’s new Internet of Things and 5G accelerator programme has already attracted 10 early stage technology companies. Sunderland is now home to 87 overseas-headquartered businesses, and more than £350 million of live development projects are underway.

Sunderland’s holistic methodology – with manufacturing, enterprise, education, retail, homes and entertainment embracing a joined-up approach – proves that wherever your town or city may be, going smart is the sensible option.

Interested in finding out more? Read our whitepaper Building smart places: A blueprint to thriving connected communities.