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LANCASTER AND MORECAMBE

 

  • As the most significant retail and administrative centre in north Lancashire, Lancaster is one of the region's key cities, also serving southern Cumbria.
  • The area's population of some 143,700 is among the fastest growing in the Northwest. Between 2001 and 2008 the population of Lancaster & Morecambe increased by 4.9% compared to an increase of 1.6% for the region as a whole.
  • In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the 30-64 age group moving into the city.
  • The city-area has recorded full-time job growth of 13.3% over the period 2000-2007, which is especially fast, and compares to a significantly slower Northwest growth rate
    of 7.2%.
  • The city-area is a centre of educational excellence, from two secondary schools ranked in the country's top twenty, through to Lancaster & Morecambe College, University of Cumbria and Lancaster University, ranked among the UK top ten British educational research centres.
  • Lancaster University has an international reputation for the quality of a number of its departments. Its massive contribution to the city-area is further enhanced by its InfoLab21, its Management School with its excellence in leadership, and its world class Lancaster Environment Centre.
  • Students account for around 11% of the city-area's population, nearly double the national average, while employment in the higher education sector is four times the
    UK average.
  • Lancaster & Morecambe enjoys excellent communications, just two miles from the M6 and with a main station on the West Coast Line. The Port of Heysham provides a gateway to the Isle of Man and Ireland.
  • Business premises costs in Lancaster are extremely competitive in relation to other Northwest commercial centres: with prime office space in Lancaster available at £10 per square foot. This compares to £30 in Manchester.
  • The cost of local housing is extremely affordable. According to Land Registry figures in 2008, the average property price, in Lancaster & Morecambe was around 13% cheaper than the average property in England and Wales.
  • A vision for Lancaster & Morecambe set out by the Lancaster & Morecambe Vision Board in its comprehensive regeneration framework points the way forward for the improved economic, social and environmental well being of the city area.