Industrial Strategy growth-driving sectors

In June 2025, the UK Government published its Industrial Strategy – a 10-year plan to significantly increase business investment and grow the industries of the future in the UK.

The Strategy focuses on backing eight sectors (the IS-8) with the highest growth-driving potential, and the frontier industries at their leading edge – and targeting the places and clusters across the UK that support those sectors, to increase national productivity, strengthen economic security and resilience, and support environmental goals and the net zero transition.

We have analysed the latest employment data (BRES, 2024) to establish which of the IS-8 are particularly prevalent in Buckinghamshire and the extent to which they are growing.  Key findings are:

  • Buckinghamshire has higher than national average employment in four IS-8 growth-driving sectors:
    • Creative industries
    • Life sciences
    • Digital and technologies
    • Advanced manufacturing
  • Within the IS-8, Buckinghamshire has higher than national average employment in four ‘frontier industries’:
    • Film and TV
    • Aerospace manufacturing
    • Music, performing, and visual arts
    • Management consultancy
  • Between 2019 and 2024, Buckinghamshire had lower average annual employee growth rates than the national average in all eight growth-driving sectors.
  • Within the IS-8 sectors however, Buckinghamshire had higher average annual employee growth rates in five ‘frontier industries’:
    • Music, performing, and visual arts (11.8% vs -1.1% nationally)
    • Film and TV (9.4% vs 3.1% nationally)
    • Accounting, audit, and tax consultancy (7.4% vs 4.1% nationally)
    • Legal services (7.0% vs 1.4% nationally)
    • Aerospace manufacturing (3.4% vs -2.3% nationally)

The Strategy also identifies eight foundational industries that provide critical inputs and infrastructure across the IS-8 sectors. Of these, Buckinghamshire has higher than national average employment in one – construction.

A full list of the IS-8 sectors, their frontier industries and the foundational industries can be found here.