All organisations receiving funding from Greater Manchester’s £2 billion Good Growth Fund will now be required to sign up to the city region’s Good Employment Charter, following a major announcement by Bev Craig, Mayor of Greater Manchester.
Speaking at the launch of Good Employment Week 2026, the Mayor unveiled the new requirement as part of a broader Good Growth Contract designed to ensure public investment delivers tangible benefits for local people, businesses and communities.
The decision means that organisations securing support through the Good Growth Fund must demonstrate a commitment not only to economic growth but also to fair employment practices, skills development, apprenticeships, local supply chains, environmental responsibility and wider social value outcomes.
Launched in 2019, the Good Employment Charter was established to raise employment standards across Greater Manchester by promoting fair pay, secure and flexible work, career progression opportunities and positive workplace cultures.
The Charter has continued to expand significantly, now backed by more than 2,500 employers. More than three million people across the UK work for organisations that have signed up, highlighting its growing influence beyond the city region.
The latest policy development strengthens the relationship between public funding and employment standards, ensuring recipients of Greater Manchester Combined Authority investment align with the region’s ambitions for inclusive growth.
The Good Growth Fund, launched in November 2025, has already allocated more than £1 billion towards projects across housing, transport and innovation.
In the most recent funding round, announced in September, £163 million was awarded to a range of developments intended to support economic growth, infrastructure improvements and innovation across Greater Manchester.
Under the new framework, funded projects will also be expected to contribute to local employment opportunities, training initiatives and community benefits alongside their core delivery objectives.
Greater Manchester Mayor Bev Craig said:
“The Good Growth Fund is a new economic model, pioneered here in Greater Manchester, that recognises the benefits of growth must be felt by people in their pockets, on their high streets and when they go out to work.
“When I became Mayor, I said that I would measure success by if people felt better off and more optimistic about their lives. For too long people have felt that they aren’t feeling the benefits of a growing Greater Manchester economy in their pockets, but we’re changing that.
“That is why I am making sure that every penny of public money spent from our Good Growth Fund goes to responsible employers that share our values of fairness, dignity and opportunity, and will support people into well-paid, secure jobs.
“By working in partnership with businesses and public sector employers through our Good Employment Charter, we can deliver a growing economy that works for everyone in Greater Manchester – through better pay, terms and conditions, security and the opportunity to thrive.
“When we say we’re delivering good growth, this is what we mean.”
This year's Good Employment Week, running from 5 to 9 October, is centred on the theme of workplace culture and its impact on employee wellbeing, organisational performance and workforce experience.
Employers, employees and stakeholders from across the region have come together to discuss the role culture plays in creating high-quality workplaces.
As part of the campaign, residents are being encouraged to consider the question, "What does your work feel like?" through an interactive online word cloud that captures experiences of work across Greater Manchester in real time.
The initiative aims to generate a live snapshot of how people describe their working lives, helping employers better understand workforce sentiment and workplace culture trends.
Image credit: iStock
