On 21 January, the Society was pleased to host a scoping evening introducing the Professional and Business Services (PBS) Growth Board, kindly hosted by St John’s Chambers. Leaders from across the region’s legal firms attended to learn more about the PBS Growth Board and its role within the UK Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy: Professional and Business Services Plan.
Immediate Past President James Mannouch opened the evening and welcomed the guest speaker, Graham Bond, Partner at RSM and Chair of the PBS Growth Board. Graham explained that the Liverpool City Region (LCR) has been designated by Central Government as a PBS Growth Hub, alongside Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, the West Midlands, and the Edinburgh–Glasgow Central Belt.
Growth Hubs are tasked with delivering a long-term strategy, and it is anticipated that the LCR PBS Growth Strategy will form a 10-year blueprint focused on boosting productivity, increasing investment, and creating thousands of jobs. The strategy will be a collaborative effort involving business, universities, and the Combined Authority, with the PBS Growth Board maintaining a “dotted-line” relationship to the Combined Authority’s Business and Enterprise Board.
Graham highlighted the scale and importance of the PBS sector within the Liverpool City Region, noting that it comprises approximately 12,000 businesses employing around 96,000 people. While PBS has significant capacity for growth in its own right, it also functions as a cross-sector enabler, supporting expansion across other industries by providing specialist advice and professional services to growing businesses.
A key theme of the presentation was the distinction between vertical and horizontal growth factors. Vertical growth relates to the infrastructure and resources firms need to expand—such as access to technology, skills, and finance—while horizontal growth concerns the expansion of a firm’s client base and markets. The PBS Growth Hub aims to support firms across both dimensions.
In his closing remarks, James Mannouch thanked Graham for his insightful presentation and emphasised that professional legal services must sit at the forefront of any PBS growth strategy. While the Liverpool City Region has experienced consolidation and contraction in other PBS sectors, legal services have remained resilient, with several firms headquartered in the city and new firms continuing to relocate to the region. James described legal services as a “winner” within the PBS sector, adding that winners should be firmly placed “in the shop window”.
Following the presentations, attendees divided into three groups to provide qualitative feedback. These discussions were facilitated by Past President Nina Ferris and current Director Laura Spence. Participants were invited to consider what growth would look like for their Liverpool operations and what internal and external factors would be required to stimulate that growth. Discussions were held under the Chatham House Rule and proved constructive and informative. As part of its ongoing commitment to member engagement, the Society found these sessions particularly valuable in shaping future services and priorities.
The evening concluded with a plenary question-and-answer session. Liverpool Law Society is keen to play an active role in the PBS Growth Plans for the Liverpool City Region, and members wishing to engage further are encouraged to contact James Mannouch at james.mannouch@law.ac.uk.
A Joint Industrial Strategy Roundtable for Legal Services will be hosted in Liverpool on 12 March, in conjunction with the national Law Society. Anyone interested to contact contactus@liverpoollawsociety.org.uk
James Mannouch
Immediate Past President