The socioeconomic footprint of British Steel in the UK

Commissioned by British Steel

This report, commissioned by British Steel, quantifies the socioeconomic footprint of British Steel across the UK.

Steel is embedded in a broad range of goods and applications used in everyday life and modern technologies.

This report quantifies British Steel’s core economic footprint, including its direct operations and upstream supply chain alongside its downstream impact across customer sectors. The analysis focuses on the 2021 calendar year, chosen as the year when production and market conditions were deemed most reflective of a normal business environment.

In 2021, British Steel and its upstream supply chain supported an estimated £1.1 billion contribution to UK GDP and around 20,200 jobs. More than 60% of this GDP contribution was concentrated in the North of England.

It also potentially enabled a further £9.8 billion in GDP and 142,000 jobs across its downstream customer sectors including construction, rail, and metals.

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The experts behind the research

Stephen Foreman

Associate Director, Economic Footprint & Sustainability

Stephen Foreman

Associate Director, Economic Footprint & Sustainability

Stephen leads a team of economists who assess the economic and social footprint of a variety of different investments, companies, and industries at the global, national and local level. He has led engagements for corporations, financial institutions, government organisations, trade associations, charities, and universities across the world.

Stephen has also worked on Oxford’s Global Industry Service where he was responsible for forecasting the global transport sector, leading Oxford Economics' industry research, and managing consultancy projects for industrial organisations.

Stephen joined Oxford Economics from the UK civil service, where he worked on a range of macroeconomic, fiscal, tax and welfare policy issues across HM Treasury, the Office for Budget Responsibility and the Department for Work and Pensions.
Evie Johnson

Senior Economist, Economic Footprint and Sustainability

Evie Johnson

Senior Economist, Economic Footprint and Sustainability

Evie is a Senior Economist in the Economic Footprint and Sustainability team at Oxford Economics. She works on a variety of projects including economic footprint studies, cost-benefit analysis, and user model development.

Evie holds a first-class BSc (Hons) in Economics and Politics with Industrial Experience from the University of Exeter and an MSc with Distinction in Economics from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.
Joe Harman

Economist, Economic Footprint and Sustainability

Joe Harman

Economist, Economic Footprint and Sustainability

Joe joined Oxford Economics in 2024 from Volterra Partners where he gained three years of experience in economic consulting assessing the socioeconomic impacts of large-scale development and infrastructure projects. Joe has an MA in Economics and Modern History from the University of St Andrews.