One of the biggest challenges local leaders have faced since the 2008 recession has been how to sustain and grow their economies in the face of weak growth in the national economy, Government austerity, shrinking budgets and – since last June – the great uncertainty resulting from the vote to leave the EU.

In the context of these issues, Preston City Council has recently been hailed in some quarters as offering an economic blueprint for other UK cities to follow in order to prosper in the post-Brexit climate. This is thanks to the council's strategy for boosting the city's economy by ‘buying local' – awarding contracts for services or products to local businesses rather than firms based elsewhere – and encouraging other public institutions to do the same, from colleges to the police and a housing association.