Opportunity Haringey

Opportunity Haringey is our inclusive economy framework, developed through listening to residents and businesses.

It sets out how we will work with local and strategic partners to create an inclusive, more resilient local economy where:

• local businesses can grow and thrive
• residents benefit from rewarding, well-paid work

Our vision is to create a fairer and greener local economy that builds on local creativity to harness Haringey’s strengths.

We want to create a circular economy that:

• retains more money within Haringey
• maximises the benefits for local communities
• supports a just transition to net zero emissions

We will promote decarbonisation principles across all business areas, while also growing the number of businesses that operate in the green sector. 

Why Opportunity Haringey is needed

Haringey is a place of opportunities and potential. We’re fast becoming a celebrated destination for music and sport and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has been announced as a host venue for the Euro 2028 football tournament.

We have 12,000+ businesses, including 2,000 high street business and 2-thirds of residents are educated to NVQ Level 4 and above, which is more than ever before.

But Haringey’s economy has been harder hit by economic downturns in comparison to other London boroughs and takes longer to recover.

Much of the economic inequality is experienced in the north-east of Haringey, with higher levels of unemployment and deprivation. 

We are determined to increase the number of good job opportunities locally and support our business community to reach its full potential.

Opportunity Haringey will allow us to:

• build on our economic strengths
• address inequalities
• take us another step closer to realising our ambition for a fairer and greener Haringey 

Supporting research

We held workshops, one-to-one meetings, focus groups and more to help inform the evidence base for Opportunity Haringey.

Alongside our own research, in 2023 we commissioned the London Metropolitan University to carry out a focussed study: the Haringey Employment Gap research project.

The project was part of the London Met Lab Empowering London initiative.

The project's aims were to:

• identify those groups in Haringey who experience the highest levels of unemployment
• highlight the barriers they face in accessing jobs
• provide recommendations which are incorporated into Opportunity Haringey

Read the project report:

Themes for action

Working with businesses and partners, we have developed 5 themes to focus our efforts on.

Theme 1 – Job Creation

• Create and support a Haringey Business Forum 
• Provide and signpost our businesses to the support they need 
• Renew our offer on low-cost finance to support business growth and entrepreneurship 
• Launch a Haringey Business Charter 

Theme 2 – Investment

• Bring new investment to Haringey
• Develop the Visitor Economy

Theme 3 – Good Work and Skills

• Reshape Haringey Works and Haringey Learns 
• Meet employer and future skills demand 
• Adopt a Social Value Statement 
• Create skills and training opportunities within the council 
• Focus on green jobs - e.g. construction, health and social care, creative and retrofit jobs

Theme 4 – High Streets and Industrial Estates

• Encourage entrepreneurship through our vibrant local markets 
• Champion the Creative Economy 
• Promote business-to-business networks and opportunities 
• Promote the vibrancy of our town centres, high streets and industrial estates 

Theme 5 – Work Places and Spaces

• Support the networks we need to deliver high-quality workspace 
• Promote quality workspace provision 
• Encourage the delivery of additional workspace across Haringey

Read our full report:

How we will make it happen

We will work in collaboration with the community and local and strategic partners to develop and take forward all the priority actions.

We will also produce an annual Opportunity Haringey economic report. This will be an opportunity to:

• review progress
• speak to stakeholders
• understand emerging trends to ensure Opportunity Haringey remains relevant and fit for purpose

Together, we can turn our vision and ambitions for Haringey into a reality.

Contact us if you have any questions or would like to find out more.