Annex A
Local Landscape
Source: Business Register and Employment Survey, 2020 (published 2021), 2020 SAP boundaries
Local Landscape - Summary
• Norfolk and Suffolk has an ageing population, with 44% of the workforce over 50 years old, in comparison to 38% across
England on average.
• When comparing the area’s employment by sector with both England and Comparator LEPs (see Annex B), the main area
of discrepancy in the region is a notable lack of employment within the “Professional, Scientific & Technical” and
“Information & Communication” sectors (6% and 2% respectively, relative to 9% and 5% nationally,)
• The employment rate in Norfolk and Suffolk has been consistently above the national level since 2005.
• However, between 2004 to 2018 the local GVA has been roughly £3/£4 less per hour worked than the UK trend.
• Furthermore, the median gross weekly wages for full-time workers in Norfolk and Suffolk (both for the workplace and
residents) has been consistently tracked below the national trend since 2014.
• EMSI Job Postings data for Norfolk and Suffolk indicates that the hardest hit industries to vacancies as a result of COVID-
19 were “Accommodation & Food” (48% decrease), “Financial & Insurance” (40% decrease), “Information &
Communication” (40% decrease) and “Arts, Entertainment & Recreation” (-37% decrease).
• Whilst a decrease in the employment share of these sectors was anticipated, particularly within “Accommodation &
Food” and “Arts, Entertainment & Recreation” the government support schemes appear to have hopefully minimised
any long-term impact on the Norfolk & Suffolk economy.
• There were several local interventions focused on getting people back into employment following redundancy, including
Work Well Suffolk and a range of ESIF projects across the region (including the job support programme and the
community grant scheme).
• When comparing Norfolk and Suffolk with the area’s Comparator LEPs most of the local landscape core indicators are of
similar value.
• Two stand out of areas of focus for Norfolk and Suffolk are “median wages weekly wage for full-time workers” and the
region’s ageing population.
• Whilst the gap in GVA per hour work between Norfolk and Suffolk and the Comparator LEPs appears to have been
closed, there is still a clear gap in median wages, both for residents and in the workplace.
Source: Business Register and Employment Survey, 2020 (published 2021), 2020 SAP boundaries
Employment by sector:
• The two largest sectors of employment in Norfolk and Suffolk are the health sector and the retail sector, making up
14% and 11% of the workforce, respectively.
• This is roughly the same as the national average, where they each contribute 13% and 9% respectively.
• New Anglia LEP’s local industrial strategy outlines three strategic opportunities: Clean Energy, Agri-food and ICT &
Digital Creative.
• Agri-food can be roughly mapped to “Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing” plus “Accommodation & Food services”, which
contribute 4% and 8% of the total employment of Norfolk and Suffolk.
• This is a clear strength of Norfolk & Suffolk, with these sectors only contributing 8% combined nationally.
• However, ICT & Digital Creative is more of a cause for concern when mapped against “Information & Communication”,
with the sector making up 2% of the area’s employment, whilst it represents 5% nationally and 3% on average across
the area’s Comparator LEPs.
• The other main area of discrepancy between Norfolk and Suffolk and the national average is the notable lack of
employment within the “Professional, Scientific & Technical” sector (6%), relative to the national average (9%).
• This is also seen when comparing Norfolk and Suffolk with the area’s Comparator LEPs, with the average employment
in the “Professional, Scientific & Technical” sector across the Comparator LEPs being 8%.
• EMSI Job Postings data for Norfolk and Suffolk indicates that the hardest hit industries to vacancies as a result of
COVID-19 were “Accommodation & Food” (48% decrease), “Financial & Insurance” (40% decrease), “Information &
Communication” (40% decrease) and “Arts, Entertainment & Recreation” (-37% decrease).
• Whilst a decrease in the employment share of these sectors was anticipated, particularly within “Accommodation &
Food” and “Arts, Entertainment & Recreation”, the government support schemes appear to have hopefully minimized
any long-term impact on the Norfolk & Suffolk economy.