About Bradford
Wherever you come from, you will receive a warm and friendly welcome in Bradford and an open invitation to enjoy a great student city.
Bradford is a thriving, student-friendly city that is rich in culture, history and character. A recent Guardian survey found Bradford to be the least expensive place for students to live in the UK.
Accommodation and food are cheap, and there is a vibrant social scene that offers something for everyone at little or no cost. The lively night life is prominent in the city’s ‘West End’, a vibrant array of bars, restaurants and nightclubs, close to the College campus at the heart of the city.
As the former ‘Wool Capital’ of the world, Bradford was once famed for its industrial excellence within the textiles sector. The Wool Exchange and ‘Little Germany’, the former wool merchants’ area of the city, reflect this industrial heritage. Whilst retaining many of its unique features, Bradford is now a very international city with a diverse cultural mix.
Bradford has become the world's first UNESCO City of Film. The city has a rich heritage in film production and is also home to the National Media Museum and the Bradford International Film Festival, which has been running for more than 15 years and regularly attracts some of cinema’s biggest names. Bradford hosts major touring theatre productions and West End shows and its 60-plus Asian restaurants helped it become UK Curry Capital in 2012.
Bradford contributes £7.5bn to the economy and this is expected to grow to more than £8bn by 2016. A series of major companies have their HQs in the district including Morrisons, Yorkshire Building Society, Banco Santander, Provident Financial, Hallmark Cards, Pace and Yorkshire Water. It is one of the biggest cities in the UK (larger than Cardiff and Belfast) and is predicted be one of the fastest growing over the next 25 years, reaching a population of 600,000 people in 2032.
As well as being home to a number of major PLCs, Bradford has a higher proportion of self-employment and new business start-ups than other cities. Bradford’s manufacturers contribute a fifth of the district’s economic output and it also has growing telehealth and digital sectors. It has excellent motorway, rail and air links, providing excellent connections to major cities in the UK and overseas.
To find out more about Bradford visit www.visitbradford.com