1
Demos for Thriving Local
Economies Project
November 2020
PR JECTS
Great Yarmouth
Life Chances Report
2
Contents
01. Great Yarmouth in the context of Covid-19 3
02. A Portrait of Great Yarmouth 4
(i) The Place
(ii) The People
(iii) The Economy
(iv) Education
(v) Poverty
03. Existing Studies and Initiatives 22
04. Proposals and Recommendations 31
3
The following analysis was conducted by Demos for Barclays’ Thriving Local
Economies project. It was informed by an analysis of local and national data relating
to Great Yarmouth and the surrounding area, an opinion survey of local businesses
conducted by YouGov. The analysis was conducted in the context of local
investment programmes and policy initiatives, as well as detailed insight from key
local stakeholders. It highlights the long-standing economic challenges for Great
Yarmouth, identies opportunities for its future, and sets out recommended areas of
intervention to make the most of these.
The impact of Covid-19 on Great Yarmouth has been, and will continue to be,
signicant. As a coastal town that has been reliant on tourism, Great Yarmouth
is particularly affected, and some of its challenges have been exacerbated by
both the virus and the attempts to control its spread. However, the data and
recommendations presented here is vital context for understanding how Great
Yarmouth’s economy can start to recover and indeed grow.
This report should be read alongside it’s companion, Great Yarmouth Intervention
Recommendations in the context of Covid-19 which offers an assessment of the
impact of Covid and our recommendations for interventions in the light of the new
circumstances created by the pandemic.
01. Great Yarmouth in
the context of Covid-19
4
The Place
Great Yarmouth is, in some ways, typical of coastal towns in Britain. Its two principal
sources of wealth – the holiday trade and the shing industry – have declined over
the last few decades. The days of the famous scene of Mr and Mrs Pegotty, Ham
and Little Emily living in an upturned boat on the beach and making a respectable
living from the sea in David Coppereld have long since gone.
Like many such places Great Yarmouth has struggled to reinvent itself after the
decline of the industries which made it thrive. However, there is a palpable sense
of excitement and dynamism from many quarters about the opportunities for Great
Yarmouth both now and in the future, and no shortage of initiatives looking to make
the most of these.
The People
At the last count in 2018 the population of Great Yarmouth was 99,370. The
average age is 42 which is younger than Norfolk as a whole (42.7) and East Anglia
(42.3) but older than the average in England which is 39.3.
1
Life expectancy in Great Yarmouth is signicantly lower than both in the rest of
Norfolk and England as a whole.
Within Great Yarmouth, there is a particularly large discrepancy in male life
expectancy between wards. Life expectancy among men in Nelson, the most
deprived ward, is 71.6 years, whereas life expectancy among men in Fleggburgh,
the least deprived ward, is 82.2 years.
02. A Portrait of Great Yarmouth
1. Ofce of National Statistics, 2011, Census 2011, QS103EW- Age by single year, accessed via Nomisweb.
Available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=503
5
22.5% of Great Yarmouth’s population has a long term life limiting illness or a
disability, considerably higher than the UK average of 17.6%. Again, the same
discrepancy can be seen across wards: 17.7% of the Fleggburgh population ts in
this category, versus 25.6% in the Magdalen ward.
3
Great Yarmouth has the highest prevalence in all of Norfolk of residents suffering
from depression, at 14.8%, signicantly higher than the national average of 11.2%.
Nearly a quarter (23%) of the people in Norfolk living with common mental health
disorders, live in Great Yarmouth & Waveney.
4
Of the 4,280 people who moved to Great Yarmouth in 2018, 12.5% were above
retirement age. There is no net migration into Great Yarmouth but there is a net
migration among elderly people, a trend that is likely to accelerate.
5
The young
people who live in Great Yarmouth, generally lack prospects: Great Yarmouth is the
2nd worst place in the country for youth ambition.
6
The population of Great Yarmouth is overwhelmingly white: 96.9%, compared
to 85.4% in England.
7
However, there have been recent migrants to the town,
specically Kurds and Portuguese, and these new communities need to be present
in the story that is told about the future of Great Yarmouth.
The Economy of Great Yarmouth
The bulk of businesses in Great Yarmouth are either small or medium-sized, The
Barclays Business Survey of 150 signicant local businesses found 76 per cent to be
dened as small, which is to say they have fewer than 50 employees. A further 16
per cent were medium-sized (between 50 and 250 employees) and 8 per cent were
larger than that.
2. Ibid
3. Ibid
4. Norfolk Community Foundation, 2016, Vital Signs.
5. The Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research, 2003, The Seaside Economy, Final report, Shefeld Hallam University.
Available at: https://www4.shu.ac.uk/research/cresr/sites/shu.ac.uk/les/seaside-economy.pdf
6. Norfolk Community Foundation, 2016, Vital Signs.
7. Ofce of National Statistics, 2011, Census 2011, QS201EW - Ethnic group, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/
construct/components/stdListComponent.asp?menuopt=12&subcomp=100
FIGURE 1.
LIFE EXPECTANCY IN
GREAT YARMOUTH,
CENSUS 2017
2
Males (years)
Females (years)
86
84
82
80
78
76
74
Great Yarmouth
Norfolk England
6
There are signicant differences between the three postcodes (NR29, NR30, NR 31)
that make up Great Yarmouth. NR29 is much the most rural of the three, though it
needs to be noted that not all of NR29 is within the pilot area.
The NR29 postcode is predominantly rural and most of the businesses are small.
The NR30 postcode covers central Great Yarmouth and, heavily reliant on travel,
hospitality and leisure, it is a much more seasonal economy than other parts of the
town. A third of the businesses in the NR31 postcode are of medium size and the
range of sectors is also larger. In all of Great Yarmouth a third of all businesses are
affected by seasonality.
Unemployment rates in Great Yarmouth have consistently been higher than in
Norfolk, New Anglia and all of England.
8,9
This is potential related to the higher
incidence in Great Yarmouth than elsewhere of people who have life limiting
illnesses or disabilities or who have caring responsibilities or who have retired early.
10
8. Ofce of National Statistics, model-based estimates of unemployment, 2004 to 2018, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/
query/construct/submit.asp?forward=yes&menuopt=201&subcomp=
9. New Anglia is a local enterprise partnership in Norfolk and Suffolk. The Ofce of National Statistics gathers data for this area specically, which is useful as a
comparison to Great Yarmouth.
10. GY Borough Council, 2019, Great Yarmouth Borough Prole 2019, p10. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=988&p=0
FIGURE 2.
MODEL-BASED ESTIMATES OF UNEMPLOYMENT RATES
IN GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK, NEW ANGLIA AND
ENGLAND BETWEEN 2004 AND 2018
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
New Anglia
England
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Rural
towns
Coastal
towns
Hub-and-
spoketowns
Ex-industrial
towns
Affluent
towns
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Rural
towns
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
7
There are concentrated areas of acute deprivation. Nelson, in Great Yarmouth town
centre, is the ward with the highest unemployment rate, at 11.2%.
An important fact about employment in Great Yarmouth is its seasonal nature which
means that the rate uctuates during the year.
11
Only 42.5% of households in Great Yarmouth are working households, the denition
of which is a household in which all the adults are working. This compares to 58.9%
in Norfolk, 60.1% in the East of England and 57.9% in England more widely.
This discrepancy grows even higher in households with dependent children: in only
28.3% of Great Yarmouth households all parents work. This proportion is almost
twice as big in both Norfolk (54.4%) and England (55.9%).
12
There is a particular problem in Great Yarmouth with the employment rate among
women which is only 58.8 per cent (86.6 per cent among men).
11. Ibid, p14
12. Ofce of National Statistics, 2018, annual population survey - households by combined economic activity status, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at:
https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=136
FIGURE 3.
PROPORTION OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH AND WITHOUT
DEPENDENT CHILDREN WHERE BOTH ADULTS WORK IN
GREAT YARMOUTH, NEW ANGLIA, NORFOLK AND ENGLAND
Working households Working households with dependent children
Great Yarmouth
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
New Anglia Norfolk England
8
The largest single industry in Great Yarmouth is Health, followed by
accommodation, food and services.
Great Yarmouth has a smaller concentration of employees than the average for
the country working in property, agriculture, information & comms and nance
industries.
Two thirds of local jobs are lled by residents from inside Great Yarmouth, and one
third are lled by residents from outside.
13
FIGURE 4.
EMPLOYED IN 2018, DIVIDED BY THE INDUSTRIES THEY
WORK IN, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK, NEW ANGLIA
AND ENGLAND
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
New Anglia
England
13. Neighbourhoods that work, 2019, Years 1 - 3.5 Evaluation Report. Available at: http://neighbourhoodsthatwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NTW-Yr3-
Evaluation-Report-Final-May-2019.pdf
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Agriculture, forestry & shing
Mining, quarrying & utilities
Manufacturing
Construction
Motor trades
Wholesale
Retail
Transport & storage (inc postal)
Accommodation & food services
Information & communication
Financial & insurance
Property
Professional, scientic & technical
Business administration
& support services
Public administration & defence
Education
Health
Arts, entertainment, recreation
& other services
9
The average weekly gross pay of Great Yarmouth residents is £572.6, whereas the
average weekly gross pay of those who work in Great Yarmouth is £656.3, which
implies that the average pay of those working but not living in Great Yarmouth is
signicantly higher.
14
Women living in Great Yarmouth make signicantly less than men. The mean gender
pay gap for full-time work for residents of Great Yarmouth is 19%, compared to
13.7% in England.
15
The borough is home to 3,070 active businesses and two Enterprise Zones. The
Beacon Park Enterprise Zone is one of the most successful in the country. There are
excellent future job opportunities connected to the offshore energy sector and the
planned construction of Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk.
16
Great Yarmouth’s GVA has grown steadily over the past 18 years, although less
quickly than the East of England as a whole.
14. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, Earnings and hours worked, place of work by local authority: ASHE Table 7. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/
employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/placeofworkbylocalauthorityashetable7 and Earnings and hours worked,
place of residence by local authority: ASHE Table 8, https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/
datasets/placeofresidencebylocalauthorityashetable8
15. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, Earnings and hours worked, place of work by local authority: ASHE Table 8. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/
employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/placeofresidencebylocalauthorityashetable8
16. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2019, Great Yarmouth Borough Prole 2019. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.
ashx?id=988&p=0
17. Ofce of National Statistics, 2017, Regional gross value added (balanced) by local authority in the UK. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/
grossvalueaddedgva/datasets/regionalgrossvalueaddedbalancedbylocalauthorityintheuk
18. Ofce National Statistics, 2017, Regional gross value added (balanced) by combined authority in the UK. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/
grossvalueaddedgva/datasets/regionalgrossvalueaddedbalancedbycombinedauthorityintheuk
FIGURE 5.
REGIONAL GROSS VALUE ADDED PER HEAD (BALANCED)
IN £, IN GREAT YARMOUTH AND THE EAST OF ENGLAND
17,18
Great Yarmouth East of England
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
10
The majority of the businesses in Great Yarmouth are small rms with between 0
and 9 employees.
19
• The majority of these businesses in Great Yarmouth are in the industries
construction, accommodation and food services and professional, scientic &
technical. This is mostly in line with gure 12, which shows what industry people
in Great Yarmouth work in.
• 19% of enterprises in Great Yarmouth are in the town centre, which provides
11% of the employment in the borough.
20
FIGURE 6.
ENTERPRISES IN GREAT YARMOUTH BY INDUSTRY,
BETWEEN 2010 AND 2019
21
Agriculture, forestry & shing
Manufacturing
Retail
Professional, scientic & technical
Education
Arts, entertainment,
recreation & other services
Mining, quarrying & utilities
Construction
Accommodation & food services
Business administration & support services
Health
19. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, UK Business Counts - enterprises by industry and employment size band. accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://
www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/submit.asp?forward=yes&menuopt=201&subcomp=
20. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2019, Great Yarmouth Borough Prole 2019. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.
ashx?id=988&p=0
21. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, UK Business Counts - enterprises by industry and employment size band, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://
www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/submit.asp?forward=yes&menuopt=201&subcomp=
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
20%
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
11
There have been changes in the pattern of employment since 2010. There is now
a relatively large proportion of enterprises working in the elds of construction,
business administration and support services, and relatively fewer retail enterprises,
as well as fewer in health and arts and entertainment. The downward trends mostly
mirror the trends across England since 2010.
In all of Norfolk, Great Yarmouth is the district with the lowest number of new
businesses created each year. Moreover, Great Yarmouth has the lowest proportion
of businesses that survive their rst ve years (41.3%), compared to 45.1% of
Norfolk businesses and 42.4% for the UK.
22
Many sectors experience skills shortages in Great Yarmouth, but this plagues in
particular construction, primary sectors and utilities, transport and storage and
manufacturing.
23
Businesses that survived for one year
Businesses that survived for two years
Businesses that survived for three years
Businesses that survived for four years
Businesses that survived for ve years
FIGURE 7.
PERCENTAGE OF BUSINESSES
SET UP IN 2013 THAT SURVIVED
UP TO 5 YEARS
22. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2019, Great Yarmouth Borough Prole 2019. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.
ashx?id=988&p=0
23. Neighbourhoods that work, 2019, Years 1 - 3.5 Evaluation Report. Available at: http://neighbourhoodsthatwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NTW-Yr3-
Evaluation-Report-Final-May-2019.pdf
Great Yarmouth England
Norfolk
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
12
The Strengths of Great Yarmouth
It is clear that, like many coastal communities, Great Yarmouth has a collection of
problems. It is not, however, without its strengths and good interventions may be
able to build on them.
The perception that Great Yarmouth is rooted in a declining tourist economy, with a
rural outer layer, for example, is by no means wholly true. The digital and technical
economy is growing and there is a great deal of investment out of sight off-shore.
There is a possibility here that Great Yarmouth may be able to brand itself as the
UK’s centre for low carbon green energy. The major stakeholders of the business
community in Great Yarmouth stress that the town is going in the right direction,
partly as a result of some of the initiatives detailed in the next section below.
There is the prospect of a town-dening idea here, which trades on the beauty
of a coastal landscape and tells a viable story about the future of the town – a
sustainable future in all senses of that word. Great Yarmouth could be a power
centre for the nation as the government sets about trying to rebalance economic
power.
Great Yarmouth needs a story about its future and sustainability could be that
story. This would be done in conjunction with the town’s heritage as a seaside
destination. After the long-term decline of the shing and leisure industries, there
seemed to be another future available to Great Yarmouth in oil and gas and in wind
power. Though these industries are close by the people involved, and most of the
prosperity generated, do not nd their way into Great Yarmouth.
Proximity to Norwich, 25 minutes by road, is also a signicant economic virtue,
particularly as Norwich is home to two good universities.
• The University of East Anglia has top-class specialist centres for computer
science, medical innovation and business.
• The University of Arts specializes in the digital and creative industries which
creates a community of migrants to the area with relevant and important skills.
In both cases a high proportion of graduates stay in Norwich because it is a
culturally interesting place in which the property prices are cheaper than in London.
Education in Great Yarmouth
All the data suggest that a lack of educational attainment is a primary driver of
Great Yarmouth’s deprivation.
The proportion of people in Great Yarmouth who have no qualications at all is
signicantly larger than in Norfolk, but similar to the proportion in England. Overall,
the population in Great Yarmouth is less educated than those in the surrounding
areas and in the country more widely.
13
The largest discrepancy is between those with NVQ3 or NVQ4 in Great Yarmouth,
compared to Norfolk and wider England.
The closest University (University of East Anglia) is still 1.5 hours away by public
transport.
FIGURE 9.
PROPORTION
OF CITIZENS
WITH LEVEL
NVQ2+
BETWEEN
2004 TO 2018
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
New Anglia
England
24. Ofce of National Statistics, 2018, annual population survey, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/submit.
asp?forward=yes&menuopt=201&subcomp=
FIGURE 8.
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT IN GREAT YARMOUTH,
NORFOLK AND ENGLAND IN 2018
24
% with NVQ4+
aged 16-64
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
% with NVQ3+
aged 16-64
% with NVQ2+
aged 16-64
% with NVQ1+
aged 16-64
% with other
qualications
(NVQ) - aged
16-64
% with no
qualications
(NVQ) - aged
16-64
Great Yarmouth
Norfolk
New Anglia
England
40%
45%
50%
55%
60%
65%
70%
75%
80%
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
14
While the proportion of citizens with NVQ2 (attained A-C on their GCSEs) or above
has risen steadily around the country, in Great Yarmouth this number is more
volatile. The proportion in Great Yarmouth educated to NVQ3 has shown a similar
variability between 2004 and 2018.
25
Key stage I
Pupils in Great Yarmouth are already behind on pupils in Norfolk, the East of
England and England in the Early Years stage. The percentage who reach the
expected level of development is signicantly lower.
This could be connected to the larger number of pupils in Great Yarmouth who live
in poverty: 21% of Great Yarmouth pupils are eligible for free school meals, and this
group of pupils is generally less likely to reach the expected level of development.
Key stage II
Great Yarmouth’s lack of achievement in Key stage 2 could perhaps also be
attributed to the high number of pupils on free school meals.
27
Ofsted has rated a much larger proportion of Great Yarmouth’s primary schools as
‘requiring improvement’ than in Norfolk, the East of England and England.
28
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
East of England
England
25. Ofce of National Statistics, 2018, Annual population survey, 2004 - 2018, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/
construct/submit.asp?forward=yes&menuopt=201&subcomp=
26. Department for Education, 2017, Education statistics by local authority district and pupil disadvantage, Early Years tables. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/
government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
27. Department for Education, 2017, education statistics by local authority district and pupil disadvantage, Primary School attainment tables. Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
28. Department for Education, 2017, education statistics by local authority district and pupil disadvantage, School Quality data tables. Available at: https://www.
gov.uk/government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
% achieving at least expected
level across all learning goals
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
% eligible for school meals % of those on school meals
reaching expected level
FIGURE 10. EARLY YEARS
FOUNDATION RESULTS
OF PUPILS IN 2017
26
15
Key stage IV
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
East of England
England
FIGURE 11. PUPILS WHO REACHED THE EXPECTED STANDARD IN
READING, WRITING AND MATHEMATICS AT KEY STAGE II IN GREAT
YARMOUTH, NORFOLK, THE EAST OF ENGLAND AND ENGLAND IN 2017
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
East of England
England
FIGURE 12. AVERAGE
ATTAINMENT 8
SCORES OF PUPILS
AND DISADVANTAGED
PUPILS IN GREAT
YARMOUTH,
NORFOLK, THE EAST
OF ENGLAND AND
ENGLAND IN 2017
Average attainment 8 score
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Average attainment 8 score
for disadvantaged pupils
% of all students reaching
the expected standard
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
% of those eligible for school meals
reaching the expected standard
16
Part of the gap between the attainment of pupils in Great Yarmouth and in Norfolk
and the rest of the East of England, disappears between Key stage 2 and Key stage
4, by the end of which disadvantaged students in Great Yarmouth achieved better
results than their counterparts in Norfolk.
29
Across the key stages
The attainment of pupils in Great Yarmouth on free school meals or otherwise
disadvantaged, while signicantly lower than other pupils, is on par with or even
better than the region and country throughout the key stages.
In KS1 Great Yarmouth’s pupils are very behind on the rest of the region and
country. However, over the next three key stages, they seem to catch up with the
other pupils - the difference between the achievements of pupils in Great Yarmouth
and elsewhere drops.
How might this be explained? The next two gures explore possible causes.
The percentage of pupils who are eligible for free school meals drops signicantly
between KS2 and the end of KS4 both in Great Yarmouth, the regions and the
rest of the country. The data on KS4 includes only those students who are enrolled
in January of year 11, so any who leave before that will not be counted. Before
January year 11, pupils might leave to a special school, a technical school or studio
school, or leave state education completely. It’s likely that among those who do
leave school, for whatever reason, those eligible for free school meals are over
29. Department for Education, 2017, education statistics by local authority district and pupil disadvantage, Secondary School attainment tables. Available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
30. Ofce of National Statistics, 2018, Education statistics by LA district and pupil disadvantage; Early Years data tables; primary school attainment tables;
secondary school attainment tables. Availalbe at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
Great Yarmouth
Norfolk
East of England
England
FIGURE 13.
PERCENTAGE
OF PUPILS ELIGIBLE
FOR FREE SCHOOL
MEALS OVER KS1,
KS2 AND KS4
30
KS1
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
KS2 KS4
17
represented. Indeed, given their lower average attainment, they might be more
likely than non-eligible students to leave for a technical or special school, or be
off-rolled.
31
The proportion of Great Yarmouth’s pupils who are on free school meals remains
higher than elsewhere. However, the gap between Great Yarmouth’s proportion of
eligible pupils and that in England does close between KS2 and the end of KS4.
Great Yarmouth is one of the most challenging places in the country for young
people to full their ambitions, so says the NCF Vital Signs report.
32
Indeed, Great
Yarmouth has the largest proportion in all of Norfolk of young people who aren’t in
employment, education or training.
33
However, as in KS2 and KS4, pupils between 16 and 19 who are eligible for free
school meals are more likely to be in sustained education and/or employment or
training than in Norfolk, East of England and the country as a whole.
34
31. FFT Education lab, 2018, Who’s Left 2018, part one: The main ndings. Available at: https://ffteducationdatalab.org.uk/2018/06/whos-left-2018-
part-one-the-main-ndings/
32. Norfolk Community Foundation, 2016, Vital Signs.
33. Ibid
34. Ofce of National Statistics, 2017 Education statistics by LA district and pupil disadvantage, 16 to 19 education data tables. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/
government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
35. Ofce of National Statistics, 2018, Education statistics by LA district and pupil disadvantage, School quality data tables. Available at: https://www.gov.uk
government/publications/education-statistics-by-la-district-and-pupil-disadvantage
FIGURE 14.
PERCENTAGE OF PUPILS ATTENDING PRIMARY AND SECONDARY
SCHOOLS WITH AN OFSTED RATING OF ‘GOOD’ OR ‘OUTSTANDING’
35
Good primary schools
Outstanding primary schools
Good secondary schools Outstanding secondary schools
Great Yarmouth
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Norfolk EnglandEast of England
18
The level of primary and secondary schools might give us more insight into the
difference in attainment of Great Yarmouth’s pupils between the Key Stages. While
the relative number of Great Yarmouth’s pupils attending a primary school Ofsted
rated as ‘good’ is similar to that in the regions and country, in 2016 it had no schools
rated as ‘outstanding’.
The number of pupils attending a secondary school rated as ‘good’ is signicantly
below the regions and country’s, however a signicant proportion of pupils attends
a secondary school rated as ‘outstanding’. Thus, the attainment of those pupils in
KS4 might explain the discrepancy between the stages.
This data is from 2016, when there were no primary schools Ofsted rated as
‘inadequate’. However, in February 2019 Oftsted rated the Great Yarmouth Primary
Academy as inadequate and placed it in special measures, nding that too many
pupils had “poor attitudes to learning”. The Chief Executive of the school criticised
the inspection and has lodged a complaint with Ofsted.
36
If these identied
problems were building over the years, this might also explain the relatively lesser
performance of Great Yarmouth’s primary pupils compared to its secondary pupils.
Business and Skills
The ready supply of the relevant skills is a concern to business in Great Yarmouth. In
the Barclays Business Survey, three in ten cited shortages as a serious issue. In the
NR29 postcode half of all businesses said the same. Fifteen per cent of businesses
say they can “never” or “rarely” nd appropriate candidates. A quarter felt that
there were not enough traineeships in the town and 41 per cent were dissatised
with some aspect of education.
The most commonly cited lacunae in skills are communication, problem-solving
and adaptability. Digital and IT skills are not currently thought to be in short supply
although that is largely because the businesses themselves have not demanded
them. When asked which skill shortages will become acute in due course, digital
and IT skills come to the fore.
The poor level of skills among the local workforce is commonly cited as a causal
factor in the low productivity in the town. As well as better training for the local
labour market, especially in the leisure sector, Great Yarmouth needs to attract
higher skilled workers to town and to entice back those who leave to go to
university.
36. BBC, 2019, Great Yarmouth Primary: Watchdog attacked over ‘inadequate’ school. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-47406279
19
Poverty in Great Yarmouth
The Indices of Deprivation are a measure created in 2000 by the Ofce for National
Statistics to assess relative deprivation at the level of Lower-layer Super Output
Areas (LSOAs) across England. The index is made up of 7 different dimensions
of deprivation; income; employment; education, skills and training; health and
disability; crime; barriers to housing and services; living environment. The index of
multiple deprivation (IMD) is the measure which combines all those 7 dimensions
into one gure.
37
For each measure, all the LSOAs are ranked based on their score, and this ranking
is then converted into a ranking of 1 out of 10. LSOAs with a score of 1 are the most
deprived 10% on that measure, whereas LSOAs with a score of 10 are the least
deprived 10%.
• The average score of all LSOAs in Great Yarmouth is 3.67, so as a district it is
more deprived than the average English district.
• 24.6% of LSOAs in Great Yarmouth were in the most deprived 10%.
• This includes all LSOAs in the Central and Northgate ward, most in Nelson ward,
some in Claydon, Yarmouth North and Magdalen. Most of these are wards in or
close to the town of Great Yarmouth, rather than more rural wards.
38
The deprived areas all score low on employment, education, skills and training.
Even the most deprived areas score better than average on the availability of
accessible housing and services.
37. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019 , Indices of Deprivation 2019, Frequently Asked Questions. Available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/
government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/le/579151/English_Indices_of_Deprivation_2015_-_Frequently_Asked_Questions_Dec_2016.pdf
38. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, Indices of Deprivation: 2019 and 2015. Available at: http://dclgapps.communities.gov.uk/imd/iod_index.html#
39. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, English indices of deprivation 2019, File 1 Index of Multiple deprivation. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/
statistics/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019
FIGURE 15.
DEPRIVATION SCORES IN ALL
LSOAS IN GREAT YARMOUTH,
WHERE SHADES OF BLUE
REPRESENT THE AREAS WITH AN
IMD BETWEEN 1 AND 5
39
1 2 & 3
4 & 5
6
7 to 9
20
Great Yarmouth’s low ranking on the IMD is caused primarily by income deprivation,
employment deprivation and education and skills deprivation. The availability of
accessible housing, and the crime levels, are the only two metrics on which Great
Yarmouth performs better than Norfolk.
While Great Yarmouth is signicantly more deprived than the rest of Norfolk, it has
improved in the last 4 years.
41
This change is due in part to a relative improvement
on health deprivation in one of the LSOAs.
Great Yarmouth Norfolk
40. Ofce of National Statistics, 2019, English indices of deprivation 2019, File 2 - domains of deprivation. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/
statistics/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019
41. English indices of deprivation 2019, File 1 Index of Multiple deprivation. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-indices-of-
deprivation-2019 and English indices of deprivation 2015, File 1 Index of Multiple deprivation. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/
english-indices-of-deprivation-2015
Deprivation
index
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Income Education CrimeEmployment Housing
Living
environment
FIGURE 16.
THE PERCENTAGE OF LSOAS
IN THE LOWEST 10% OF THE
DEPRIVATION INDEX
40
FIGURE 17.
THE LSOAS WITH
SCORE 1 ON THE IMD
IN GREAT YARMOUTH
AND NORFOLK,
BETWEEN 2015
AND 2019
Great Yarmouth
Norfolk
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
2015 2019
21
Nelson ward, Central and Northgate ward
Nelson ward and Central and Northgate ward are the two most deprived wards in
Great Yarmouth. Parts of the Nelson ward rank 20th out of 32,844 wards in England
(where the 1st is the most deprived).
42
Nelson, and Central and Northgate Wards,
were once the heartland of small hotels and guest houses but the decline in the
traditional seaside holiday has meant a growth of multiple occupation houses,
bedsits and small ats. These two wards have the highest density of housing, and
highest proportion of rental properties, in the entire Great Yarmouth borough.
There are quite a large number of households that would classify as houses in
multiple occupation (HMOs) in these wards: where there are more occupants than
bedrooms, both with and without dependent children. However, in the Great
Yarmouth borough council overall, the number of households with more occupants
than bedrooms is similar to the region and country. 1.28% of Great Yarmouth
households are HMOs (including those with dependent children), compared to
0.94% in Norfolk, 1.39% in East of England and 1.99% in all of England.
The number is the highest in Nelson ward. 6.18% of households have fewer
bedrooms than occupants, and 70% of those have no dependent children.
43
A possible explanation is that large groups of migrant workers live together,
occupying bedrooms with more than one person per room. This seems likely given
the demographics of Nelson ward: 54.4% of the population is male, a larger than
usual group is of working age, and 18.2% of the residents were born in another EU
country, more than four times the percentage in Norfolk and wider England. 8.1%
have Portuguese as their main language, and 9.9% another European language.
44
In Central and Northgate ward 5.23% of the households are in multiple occupation,
62% of which are households without dependent children.
45
37.5% of the residents
in this ward have no qualications, which is many times higher than the number in
Great Yarmouth generally.
While a growing majority of crime and complaints about Anti-Social behaviour
to the police come from these two wards, no correlation was found between the
number of Mandatory Licensed HMOs and crime levels in a Preliminary Investigation
by the local police.
46
42. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2018 Consultation on Selective Licensing in the Nelson Ward. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/
CHttpHandler.ashx?id=2882&p=0
43. Ofce of National Statistics, LC4105EW - Occupancy rating (bedrooms) by household composition, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.
nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=866
44. Norfolk Insight, Area reports, Lower Super Output Area, Great Yarmouth 006B. Available at: https://www.norfolkinsight.org.uk/population/report/view/
a22e7c67d04440718eeafe082e25b5cc/E01026623/
45. Ofce National Statistics, LC4105EW - Occupancy rating (bedrooms) by household composition, accessed via Nomisweb. Available at: https://www.
nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=866
46. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2018 Consultation on Selective Licensing in the Nelson Ward. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/
CHttpHandler.ashx?id=2882&p=0
22
The decline of coastal towns is well-known and there have been many initiatives
in recent years directed at arresting that decline. Some of the relevant studies and
initiatives are summarized below:
House of Lords Select Committee on Regenerating Seaside
Towns and Communities, The Future of Seaside Towns
47
• Investing in the restoration and enhancement of the public realm and cultural
heritage is vital to the visitor and wider economy. The Coastal Communities
Fund generally funds such projects, but is very over-subscribed.
• Boosting local tourism economy requires tackling a lot of mixed and complex
issues, so more strategic local plans are crucial. The national Tourism Sector
Deal can provide some insights into what such strategies could entail.
• The key to Brighton’s economic rise since the 1980s is a ‘diverse economy
driven by its knowledge base and exible workforce’. Other keys to Brighton’s
success include:
u A strong retail offer, with over 350 small independent shops
u Dynamic employment base with large student population
u High quality education
u Tourism and hospitality focus on conferences & weekend breaks
u Strong events & arts programme across the city
u Innovation and sustained investment
• In all coastal towns, diversication of the economy, away from tourism only, is
central. Great Yarmouth is mentioned here, as their focus on the energy and
marine environment sectors has been exemplary. Overall, the Select Committee
nds that creative industries play a central role in such diversication.
• Port operators can help drive the regeneration of seaside towns, and thus
available land ought to be used to expand this potential.
• Many towns fail to meet their economic potential because of connectivity issues,
and a detailed review of how to improve transport in coastal areas is necessary.
03. Existing Studies and Initiatives
47. Available at: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201719/ldselect/ldseaside/320/320.pdf
23
• Similarly, improving digital connectivity through high quality broadband and
mobile connectivity can help overcome the challenges of the remoteness of
many coastal areas.
• Improved education quality and a focus on entrepreneurial skills can boost
coastal town’s economies. An increased focus on exible, online, part time and
distance learning can increase access for those in coastal towns. Moreover,
partnerships between educational institutions and local business and industry
can help create a smoother ‘talent pipeline’. Best practice examples are The
Careers and Enterprise Company and Founders4Schools.
• Any education effort should be place-based and coordinated, while giving
special attention to the needs of disadvantaged families.
• For areas with seasonal employment, non-work periods should be used to
develop employees’ skills. This could be funded by the employer in a scheme
similar to an apprenticeship.
• Local skills strategies which allow for sustainable partnerships between industry,
educational institutions and the third sector.
Great Yarmouth Borough Council Retail Study 2011
48
• Retail and leisure offer in GY must be ‘t for purpose’ and large enough to
attract frequent shopping.
• The GY Town centre needs a more diverse evening economy, which can
be promoted by the development of better opportunities for the food and
convenience sector.
• More investment in leisure offers by refurbishment of new cultural locations
could provide a boost for other evening retail such as food and drink.
• An attractive anchor/attraction is often needed in order to create enough “spin-
off” expenditure.
• For Great Yarmouth’s market, best practice actions and interventions should be
explored (for examples of these, see p113)
• Some specic recommendations to support and encourage local retail include:
u Rewards for those who shop locally
u Ensuring sufciency of parking and regular review of parking provisions
u Take, swift, positive action to ll empty shops
u Protect the town centre from out-of-town retail development
u Encouraging Shop Front Improvements
u Encouraging markets and festivals
u Maintaining stronger partnerships
u Give the business community a stronger voice
u Encourage development above ground oor retail within town centres
48. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=1248&p=0
24
• The links between the seafront and the town centre ought to be improved, which
can be done with a range of projects, including:
u ‘Potential re-conguration of vacant shop units to include art gallery
space and centrally located start up space for local entrepreneurs;
u Potential re-conguration of vacant shops units to create larger
oorplates and therefore provide for the requirements of multiple retailers;
u Consider artwork competitions for vacant shop frontages to give the
impression of more active shopping streets;
u New public art provision throughout the town centre building on rich
seasideheritage and time building on seaside heritage and along length of
seafront, e.g. themed sculpture park;
u Marketing the town centre as a single brand, incorporating the market,
Seafront, retailers and other visitor attractions.‘
University of Sussex, South East Coastal Towns:
Economic Challenges and Cultural regeneration, 2009
49
• Cultural activity has helped revitalise economic prospects in four seaside towns
in the South East, some examples of best practice include:
u an amusement park of historic rides
u literary and other festivals
u higher education courses in art
u a ‘cultural quarter’ via grass-roots entrepreneurship
u Maritime and heritage appeal, created in partnership with a university
• The University of Sussex found that for the success of such initiatives, more
effective cooperation between cultural, educational and civic bodies is central.
Coastal towns ought to be treated as a specic group in need of continued
development through cultural investments.
The Academy of Urbanism, The rebirth of
British seaside resorts and coastal towns, 2018
50
• Like the Select Committee, the Academy reiterates the need for a diverse
economy, and they note that the economies of towns who have difculty letting
go of their focus on tourism generally struggle.
• Reiterating the research by the University of Sussex, they consider one of the
more equitable and sustainable sources of regeneration to be investment in arts
and culture, although they point out it isn’t successful in all cases.
• Education investment is good for skills and a constant inux of young people.
49. Summary available at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/2501
50. Available at: https://www.academyofurbanism.org.uk/the-rebirth-of-british-seaside-resorts-and-coastal-towns/
25
51. Available at: https://www.coastalcommunities.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/coastal-regeneration-handbook.pdf
52. Great Yarmouth Council, 2019, Statement welcoming funding to help promote Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft for offshore wind investment. Available
at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/article/5723/Statement-welcoming-funding-to-help-promote-Great-Yarmouth-and-Lowestoft-for-offshore-wind-
investment
53. Great Yarmouth Council, Invest: Ambitious Plans. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.co.uk/business/invest-ambitious-plans.aspx
• Across all coastal towns local pride and successful local partnerships are key
factors in successful regeneration.
• A best practice example is Scarborough where a combination of a high quality
promenade and harbour area, a ‘pleasure zone’ with live entertainment and
gambling, and cultural investment boosted the economy.
Coastal regeneration in English Resorts Handbook,
Coastal Communities, 2010
51
• National coordination of coastal regeneration activity should be a priority.
• Coastal regeneration should be holistic and focused around reviving and
revitalising, rather than destroying and replacing.
• Increased enterprise and innovation support is necessary in coastal towns.
• Again, the potential of heritage and culture based regeneration is mentioned.
• Demographic ageing of coastal towns presents a challenge, but also an
opportunity: Older people who are over or close to retirement age still want to
stay economically and socially active; coastal areas can develop innovative and
cutting-edge products and services to deal with the trend.
• Lastly, the report points out the need for more detailed research into the specic
challenges of coastal enterprise, tourism and public costs.
In addition to these wider studies of policy pertaining to coastal towns, there is a
range of initiatives taking place in Great Yarmouth itself:
Marketing campaign to promote GY as world leaders in offshore wind
In 2019 Great Yarmouth Borough Council secured £98,000 from New Anglia Local
Enterprise Partnership (LEP) towards a major branding and marketing campaign
to position Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft as world leaders in offshore wind,
maximising visibility to potential investors and Government. The programme will
bring together private sector and other partners, such as the East of England Energy
Group (EEEGR) and the All Energy Industry Council. This announcement follows the
launch in Great Yarmouth of the governments Offshore Wind Sector Deal.
52
Great
Yarmouth Borough Council is also constructing Great Yarmouth Energy Park.
53
Future Place Great Yarmouth
This initiative, launched in 2019, is run by a consortium of architecture and housing
institutes. It’s a two-phase initiative which will unlock placemaking potential at
local level through quality in design, future thinking, and knowledge sharing. Great
Yarmouth has been chosen as one of its ve places. The focus is ‘Heritage and
26
innovation-led placemaking and growth’. The nal output will take the form of an
urban design/historic analysis and an illustrated public realm improvement strategy
for the seafront. This strategy will help optimise and GY council’s initiatives for Great
Yarmouth including a Town Centre Masterplan and a Culture and Tourism Strategy.
54
Neighbourhoods that work, 2016-2021
“Neighbourhoods that work is a 3-5 year partnership initiative, led by Great
Yarmouth Borough Council together with seven partner organisations. NTW aims
to connect local communities to the benets of economic growth by increasing
community resilience, by improving the responsiveness of Voluntary Sector support
services and by increasing the participation of communities in driving forward
sustainable economic development.” According to its 3.5 year evaluation report
it’s already created 33 new jobs and many other signicant outcomes in Great
Yarmouth.
55
Comeunity, Make it Happen, MESH
These are three neighbourhood ofces, which are part of the Neighbourhoods that
work programme, set up by the council.
56
Town Centre Masterplan by GY council, 2017-2024
“Great Yarmouth’s Town Centre Masterplan promotes 6 area orientated
development projects, each with a unique but complementary focus, generating
new investment and employment opportunities.”
57
The master plan contains proposals for a substantial redevelopment programme in
the town. It will include 7,000 new homes, a sea front leisure centre, an increase in
residential property in the town centre and a new bridge to a proposed Freeport.
My Community: Great Yarmouth CED Plan, 2019
“The plan builds on the ambitions of the £3m local ‘Our Place’ programme
‘Neighbourhoods that Work’ (NTW), which includes the formation of an ‘incubator’
for locally owned and managed co-operative enterprises. The incubator aims to
help local resident s pool assets to tap into economic opportunities and increase
their role in providing services and amenities. The design of the incubator is
ongoing, but so far, the most developed project is a local cultural services co-op
that offers hospitality, cultural and creative services to the local public and private
sectors and its employees.”
58
54. Riba Architecture, 2019, Future Place Open Call Great Yarmouth - Heritage and innovation-led placemaking and growth. Available at: https://www.
architecture.com/knowledge-and-resources/knowledge-landing-page/future-place-open-call-great-yarmouth-heritage-and-innovation-led-placemaking-and-
growth
55. Neighbourhoods That Work, 2019, Year 3 Evaluation Report. Available at: http://neighbourhoodsthatwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NTW-Yr3-
Evaluation-Report-Final-May-2019.pdf
56. Great Yarmouth Council, How do we work with local communities. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/article/2088/How-do-we-work-with-local-
communities
57. Available at: https://mediales.thedms.co.uk/Publication/EE-GYar/cms/pdf/274%20-%20Inward%20Investment%20Inserts%20version%205%20
Masterplan%20190%20x%20277%20CROPPED.pdf
58. Available at: http://mycommunity.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Great-Yarmouth-CED-case-study.pdf
27
JoinedUP GY - Working smarter for a better borough 2015-2020
“Great Yarmouth Borough Council has been working with partners to support
economic growth in the borough, revive the tourism industry and showcase the
wealth of heritage in order to tackle the challenges in the community.
59
The more
detailed initiatives that form part of this plan, have been praised as examples of
best practice by the University of Anglia.”
60
Towns Fund Initiative, 2019
“Up to £25m could be awarded to Norwich, King’s Lynn, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft
and Ipswich under the government’s £3.6bn Towns Fund initiative. The government
announced that they are among 100 places eligible for support from the fund and
have been invited to draw up proposals to secure what is known as a Town Deal.”
61
Grants for VCSE, 2019/2020
“Great Yarmouth Borough Council is inviting applications from providers from the
Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Sector who are suitably qualied
and experienced to deliver some or all of a range of projects/services within the
Great Yarmouth Borough during 2019/20.”
62
Great Yarmouth & Gorleston Young Carers Project, 2011 - ongoing
“This charity was established in October 2011 to offer young carers aged 8-17,
and young adult carers aged 18-25, respite and support to help them cope
with providing care for a family member. Having caring responsibilities can
have a dramatic effect on young people’s lives, affecting their physical and
emotional health and educational attainment. Support for young adult carers is
particularly important, as over 18’s are not able to access general ‘young carer’
provision, despite facing challenging transitions from school to higher education
or employment. The group continues to provide peer support and respite for
this age group, together with practical employability skills and help to manage
coursework.”
63
Great Yarmouth Inclusion Project
Initiative by Great Yarmouth Borough Council, funded by the European Social Fund,
available to GY residents to support them with nding work or training. Advisor and
trainer Eileen is based in different Community locations open to all residents and
provides workshops or one-to-one appointments.
64
59. The JoinedUp Plan is available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=1419&p=0
60. East of England Development Agency, 2011, Improving the Economy of the East of England, 1999-2011. Available at: https://www.uea.ac.uk/
documents/3154295/0/Improving+the+Economy+of+the+East+of+England.pdf/76397d58-3053-4d8d-86bc-8d9d49b595ff
61. Eastern Daily Press, 2019, Government says Norwich, Great Yarmouth, King’s Lynn and Lowestoft in frame for up to £25m boosts. Available at: https://www.
edp24.co.uk/news/politics/norfolk-and-suffolk-could-get-boost-from-town-deals-1-6256973
62. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2019, Grant funding opportunity for VCSE delivery in Great Yarmouth borough. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.
gov.uk/article/5328/Grant-funding-opportunity-for-VCSE-delivery-in-Great-Yarmouth-borough
63. https://gygyc.org.uk/
64. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, Employment Support. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/employment-support
28
Pushing Ahead project
“A £440,000 Department for Transport funded project to promote walking and
cycling in Norwich and Great Yarmouth”
65
GYROS
“Formed in 1998, GYROS supports newcomers and migrant communities across
Norfolk and Suffolk.”
66
Helping Hands Fund
This is a fund by Great Yarmouth Borough Council, for young people to support
them in sports and cultural endeavours.
67
Then, as well as the programmes focused specically on Great Yarmouth there are
plans and initiatives which derive from Norfolk and New Anglia:
Norfolk Enterprise Recognition Award
“The Young Chamber Enterprise Recognition Award is an award recognising and
celebrating education establishments in Norfolk that are committed to improving
the employability skills of young people in our region.”
68
The New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership Growing Business Fund
“This fund provides grants of up to £500,000 for expanding businesses and creating
new jobs. Businesses in qualifying areas may apply for a grant of up to 30% of the
total cost of a capital investment project such as premises expansion or plant and
machinery.”
69
The New Anglia Growth Hub
The Growth Hub provides small grants: “The New Anglia Local Enterprise
Partnership Small Grant Scheme offers grants of £1,000 to £25,000 for micro, small
and medium sized businesses.” The also provide advice, skills audits, workshops
and many other ways to grow and scale up your business.
70
65. Norfolk County Council, 2016, Introduction to the Pushing Ahead project. Available at: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/UKNORFOLK/
bulletins/17997d6
66. https://www.gyros.org.uk/
67. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, Sports and Culture Grants. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/article/2109/Sports-and-culture-grants
68. Norfolk Chambers of Commerce, Enterprise Recognition Award. Available at: https://www.norfolkchamber.co.uk/enterprise-recognition-award
69. New Anglia, Growing business fund. Available at: https://newanglia.co.uk/growing-business-fund/
70. https://www.newangliagrowthhub.co.uk/
29
LIFT: Local Investment in Future Talent until spring 2020
“The Local Investment in Future Talent (LIFT) programme is a three strand
employability and skills delegated grant scheme for voluntary, community and social
enterprises (VCSE) and other relevant organisations in the rural areas of Norfolk and
North Suffolk. There is just over £1m grant funding available for eligible projects up
to spring 2020.” The three strands are LIFT Jobs, LIFT Trials and LIFT Skills.
71
Thriving Workplaces
Norfolk’s free healthy workplace provider. They will send someone to employers
who sign up and then offer free help tailored to your business.
72
Innovation New Anglia
“Innovation New Anglia, part funded through the European Union European
Regional Development Fund (ERDF), operates across Delivery Partner hubs
throughout Norfolk and Suffolk, spanning the sectors of high value manufacturing
and engineering, clean technology (transport, buildings, technologies, energy),
biotechnology (agri-bio, industrial biotech, food & health, med-tech) and infotech
(smart cities, ICT). The Innovation New Anglia programme provides tailored
business support, sector specic expertise and advice, networking opportunities at
events, masterclass workshops, opportunities for collaboration.”
73
BEE Anglia
“BEE Anglia is a three-year programme which will provide free support to at
least 1,000 SMEs across Suffolk and Norfolk to become more energy efcient. It
has been developed by Suffolk County Council, Groundwork, Nwes and Norfolk
County Council and is part funded through the European Union European Regional
Development Fund (ERDF).”
74
KEEP+
“Connecting SMEs to academic expertise and graduate talent, this new European
Regional Development Fund-subsidised programme will help boost your business
through research and development support that will help you launch new products
and services. By partnering with Anglia Ruskin University, KEEP+ will provide your
small to medium sized enterprise (SME) with a exible programme that will help you
innovate.”
75
71. Norfolk City Council, LIFT: Local Investment in Future Talent. Available at: https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/business/grants-and-funding/european-funding/eu-
programmes/business-growth-innovation-and-skills/local-investment-in-future-talent
72. https://thrivingworkplaces.org.uk/
73. Norfolk City Council, EU-funded grant schemes in Norfolk. Available at: https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/business/grants-and-funding/european-funding/eu-
programmes/business-growth-innovation-and-skills/eu-funded-grant-schemes-in-norfolk
74. http://www.beeanglia.org/
75. https://aru.ac.uk/business-employers/knowledge-exchange/keep-plus
30
Chamber of Commerce
The Chamber sponsors a number of local initiatives which include the Town Deals
Board, the Cultural Board, a Coastal Connect programme to extend the reach of
local business, a programme to make Great Yarmouth more digital, another to make
it less white and male.
Some community leaders did present an important caveat to all this activity. At
least some of the community leaders are keen to point out that, all this action
notwithstanding, Great Yarmouth has some persistent problems. Though there is
a range of views, not all local leaders believe the initiatives listed above are really
doing enough to tackle the underlying problems.
There is also a recurring complaint that many of the initiatives are not sustainable
because the funding is so erratic. Business in the Community, for example, was
having a highly positive impact until the funding dried up and activity slowed down.
Some community leaders also feel that there is a further problem that working
together is not as coordinated as it needs to be. The scale of the problems
encountered means there is a tendency for people to retreat behind their
institutional lines. This is, again, by no means a universal view but it was expressed
often enough for it to be worth noting. The Local Economic Partnership, for
example, could work better if the lines of communication were clearer.
There is also a local controversy over whether the decision not to have a metro
mayor in Great Yarmouth was the correct one.
31
Both the published public data and the consultations with stakeholders show
that Great Yarmouth has a severe set of problems, some of which are familiar to
places of average success all over the country, some of which are particular to a
seaside place and some of which are common in places that have lost their original
raison d’etre.
Great Yarmouth loses many of its best people. There is a strong sense that success
lies elsewhere and many of the talented leave and do not come back. The same
is true of the wealthier people in the town, most of whom do not live in Great
Yarmouth. There has been a loss of the link between enterprise and the community
of Great Yarmouth. The owners of the businesses do not, for the most part, live in
the area. Business start-up rates are poor and many businesses do not last long.
There is a lack of expertise and support at critical moments in the life cycle of new
businesses.
Unemployment is a problem, caused by the decline in traditional sources of jobs
and the failure of education and training to equip the local workforce with relevant
skills. The level of economic inactivity is very high which suggests that a substantial
number of people are caring for relatives as well as the lack of employment
opportunities. Education is not as good as it needs to be, especially in the early
years, in which attainment is poor. Great Yarmouth has a particular problem with
young people who are not in any kind of productive activity.
Great Yarmouth also faces a set of problems which are the responsibilities of central
or local government and which therefore fall outside the scope and capability of the
Thriving Local Economies project. Transport and infrastructure need considerable
improvement. The area around the railway station, for example, which is the entry
point to the town for many visitors, is not the most attractive rst port of call. The
A47 is not a good transit for business. There is also a good deal of investment
needed in the town to attract people back in, especially at night. There will be
no recovery in the night-time economy, though, until problems with anti-social
behaviour are addressed.
04. Proposals and
Recommendations
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Our research with local stakeholders showed that there is a real desire in the people
and businesses of Great Yarmouth to tackle these problems, and much energy and
passion committed to doing so. Thriving Local Economies can signicantly support
Great Yarmouth to achieve its goals. Here are some of the options which derive
from the analysis of the issues presented above:
Culture and Festival
The supporting literature on coastal towns is clear that an emphasis on culture is
an effective way of bringing new impetus to fading places. Heritage and tradition
can be deployed as a stimulus to the past even if the industries supported back
then have declined or disappeared. A sponsored festival could be a boost to the
condence and sense of self in the town and it would be easy to work with the
existing Aldeburgh festival.
Climate Change
Towns such as Great Yarmouth suffer from an intense loss of purpose when the
industry on which they are based declines to the point of no recovery. Great
Yarmouth would benet from a reinvention and one candidate for such reinvention
is to stress the environment. This makes a virtue of the coastal location and connects
to an issue of national and global importance. It also connects to an industrial need
because one of the burgeoning industries of the region is off-shore wind. A sense of
excitement could be generated about the science and the politics of climate change
which could galvanise the local population. An intervention on these broad lines or
one more specically targeting the relevant skills would be salutary.
Skills Task Force
Although there are local initiatives on skills – the Local Economic Partnership does
some good work for example – there is often little awareness of what is on offer.
More help would also be welcome. A programme of training designed and targeted
for the leisure sector would meet a local need.
Start-up Support
There would be enormous value in the provision of expertise to local entrepreneurs
and would-be business people. Great Yarmouth is the district in Norfolk with
the lowest number of new businesses created each year. There were signicant
differences recorded between the three postcodes in this respect which would
lend itself to a targeted intervention. Stakeholders in the area were clear that there
would be great value in a scheme to encourage start-up businesses. Provision of the
relevant information, and some ongoing support, would be very valuable as many
people thought that this is not well provided at the moment.
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Business Development Support
As well as a poor start-up rate, Great Yarmouth has the lowest proportion of
businesses that survive their rst ve years (41.3%), compared to 45.1% of Norfolk
businesses and 42.4% for the UK.
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Businesses in Great Yarmouth often begin to
fall away after an initially promising beginning. There is a decit of knowledge
and expertise, an absence of mentoring and a lack of guidance which a good
programme could rectify. This is a problem that was prominent in the Great
Yarmouth business survey in which only 17 per cent of business respondents
thought there was enough support available in the area.
Horizons
It was evident from speaking to stakeholders that many in Great Yarmouth are
optimistic about the town and its future. But it is also clear that this sadly isn’t the
case for everyone, that some young people suffer from a sense of gloom and a
distinct feeling that a good future lies somewhere else, particularly those from the
deprived wards. Aspiration and a sense of a good future is a serious problem and so
any mentoring or help with this in schools would be of considerable value.
NEETS
Great Yarmouth has a problem with young people who are not in full time
employment and not in work. A programme that would help them into work would
be very valuable. Many of the young people in Great Yarmouth have an urgent need
of the skills that could be imparted either in the life skills or a work skills programme.
Deprived Wards
Central, Northgate and Nelson wards are among the most deprived in the nation
and there is therefore scope for a targeted intervention in those places. Many of the
suggestions above could be appropriate. A life skills approach would be very useful
and so would an intervention to impart the basic skills of the workforce. This too
would have the effect of lifting aspiration, which is low in these wards.
Sustainability Centre
If the future of Great Yarmouth is, at least in part, contained in the energy business
then there is an opportunity to galvanize the town around this goal. A local study
or policy centre, linked to and validated by the University of East Anglia could do
this work. Endowment of a centre like this would provide a lasting legacy to Great
Yarmouth. It could be a research institute, a policy center, a campaigning body, a
local education resource or a combination of those things.
76. Great Yarmouth Borough Council, 2019, Great Yarmouth Borough Prole 2019. Available at: https://www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.
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