Bank of England to visit Bradford to hear the views of local people about the cost of living

About the event

Date: Monday 24 March 2025, 5.30pm to 8pm 

The Bank of England is to hear from local people in Bradford about the impact of the cost of living on their finances, as part of our Citizens’ Forum Programme which has been running across the UK since 2018.

The event is designed to gather information from local people, which will complement existing data and analysis, and help inform the Bank’s policy decisions.

Monetary policy has been guided by the need to squeeze inflation out of the economy to achieve the 2% target, both in a timely manner and on a lasting basis. High inflation has affected everyone, but it particularly hurts those who can least afford it.

Inflation has fallen over the last year, and is currently at 3% (as at January 2025). At the February meeting, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) cut Bank Rate to 4.5%.

The event in Bradford on Monday 24 March (5.30pm-8pm) will give attendees the opportunity to share their views with Bank officials, including Dr Swati Dhingra, external member of the MPC. Swati will be joined by staff from the Bank's Agency for Yorkshire & the Humber (Y&H).

Alex Golledge, the Bank’s Agent for Y&H said: “We look forward to hearing from the people of Bradford, to better understand how they view the UK economy, and to answer any questions on our work to keep prices low and stable”.

The event will be chaired by Steph Taylor, CEO of Leeds Community Foundation.

Anyone aged over 18 is eligible to apply to attend – see the Citizen’s Forum page before Monday 10 March when registration closes.

Refreshments will be provided, and the Bank will make a payment of £25 to all attendees to cover expenses.