ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the rise of the regions cannot be understood fully without unpacking how the variations in regional economic and political landscapes structure opportunities for inclusion to all citizens. One of the major issues to emerge when re-examining the region is that gendered relationships (as well as ethnicity and class) in the workplace and in the politics have an important – and unappreciated – effect shaping the form that particular places take. The English regions have historically had different kinds of social relations in the private and the public spheres, including the political sphere (McDowell and Massey, 1984; Massey, 1985). We argue that highlighting the distinctive ways in which gender relationships have unfolded in the English regions is critical to understanding the respective regions and provides a more insightful analysis of particular regional economic development coalitions.
