What is Future North?
Future North is a free regular Substack that explores the people, projects and ideas shaping the future of the North of England, written by JP Spencer.
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Why sign up?
I write for professionals and the curious alike - those who may or may not follow every detail of Northern development but want to understand the forces at work behind it. Sometimes that means unpacking complex regional policy or history; other times, it’s a single chart, fact or quote that tells the story best.
You’ll find features on major projects like Northern Powerhouse Rail or the West Yorkshire tram system, but also on how the North East is tackling child poverty, why Warrington is a hub for nuclear industry professionals, or the trials and tribulations of aiming to finish the Wainwrights between work and family life.
I may also range further afield in terms of topic and geography depending on what is going on and what is interesting.
Who am I?
I’m an economist and public policy expert based in West Yorkshire with experience across central government, local government, politics and the private sector.
I’ve worked in HM Treasury on Budgets and founding the Darlington Economic Campus, at Greater Manchester Combined Authority during the pandemic and at Labour Together before and after the 2024 General Election. I’m currently the Director of Devolution Policy at Labour Together, though will be writing here in a personal capacity.
My aim is to offer insight drawn from my background and work in economics, history and politics - focused not on daily headlines, but on the bigger picture: how institutions, infrastructure and leadership are transforming this region.
Why now?
As I write this in Summer 2025, there’s a sense of momentum. By 2027, every part of the North could have an elected mayor with real power to shape local services - a sense of agency we haven’t seen since the 1980s, perhaps even the postwar years. Let alone the Industrial Revolution or the Kingdom of Northumbria.
Progress here isn’t just measured in buildings and buses, but in agency - in lives lived with greater opportunity and fulfilment.
Future North is a chronicle of that progress - of a region reimagining itself - and it’s written for anyone who lives in, works with or simply cares about the North of England.
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