Northumbria

Northumbria District serves an area from the Scottish border to the south of the River Tyne, and from the Cumbrian border in the west, to the North Sea. It has a total population of around 945,000. It covers the county of Northumberland, City of Newcastle upon Tyne, and the borough of North Tyneside and Gateshead, making it one of the largest Districts in the country. Its make-up is diverse, varying from rural in the north west to the urban south east.

Northumberland is one of the largest counties in England, with a total land area of almost 2,000 square miles, but a population of only 300,000 people.

More than half the population live in the urban south east, occupying less than 5% of the total land area. Most of the biggest towns - Blyth, Ashington, Cramlington, Morpeth and Bedlington - are in this urban corner. The large rural area is served by three main market towns - Alnwick, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Hexham. More than 200 villages have less than 500 residents.

The last ten years have seen a decline in the mining and manufacturing industries, and the urban south east is eligible for regeneration funding, European Social Funds, and investment. The District is supporting the Market Towns Initiative funded by the Countryside Agency. However retail, tourism, public and business services have all seen major growth.

Unemployment is broadly in line with the rest of the North East. Although there are disadvantaged areas concentrated in the more urban east side of Northumberland, most notably Ashington and Newbiggin, where unemployment rates currently stand at 6.8%, this contrasts with the more affluent west, where average unemployment rates hover around 2.0%.

Newcastle & North Tyneside's combined area is around 80 square miles, with a population of approximately 454,000. Previously heavily reliant on the manufacturing industry, an expansion of the retail, education, government and leisure sectors has resulted in the same number of jobs now as 25 years ago.

There are approximately 150,000 jobs in the city boundary (50 - 60,000 of them inbound commuters). There is ongoing regeneration of the physical fabric of the City, particularly the City Centre and Quayside areas. Newcastle International Airport has recently expanded, with higher business and leisure travellers and more flights to UK & international destinations.

The area is growing in tourism, digital creative industries and construction. There is also a resurgence of marine engineering and stability of financial and professional services. There is a growth of universities and colleges as businesses in their own right, developing new businesses and supplying graduates to local labour market.

To support this growth, huge property development is taking place throughout the area.

Newcastle upon Tyne is among the top 150 cities in the world with annual GDP of £12bn. It currently enjoys a property investment boom with around 2 million sq ft of accommodation, housing, leisure and business space. There are currently 5 strategic sites of 4 million sq ft of capacity under way - Newcastle Great Park, Newburn, Walker, Ouseburn and the City Centre.

Gateshead, located on the south bank of the Tyne, stretches from Pelaw in the east to Chopwell and Rowlands Gill in the west, and incorporates Blaydon, Birtley, Felling, Ryton and Whickham. It has one of the most integrated transport systems in the UK, combining a network of bus operators, the Metro and good road and motorway links. The local economy is dominated by small to medium employers operating mainly in the service sector. Gateshead has the highest proportion of firms in the distribution, hotels and restaurants sector on Tyneside.

Over 40% of jobs are in the manufacturing or wholesale/retail sectors, with the Metro Centre Shopping Centre and Retail Park, one of the largest shopping centres in Europe, housing over 300 employers.

The current extensive regeneration of the Gateshead Quays area has greatly increased the numbers of jobs in construction, and when work is complete, the Baltic riverside area, comprising the Sage Music Centre, the Baltic Arts and Music Centres, along with the proposed 50 acre Baltic Business Park, will create an estimated 5000 new jobs. Other large employers such as the Hilton Hotel group and Marks and Spencer have made substantial investment in the borough over the last year.

For more information, contact Paul Jorgensen, District External Relations Manager, tel 0191 203 8886