Crawley wages second only to London, says report

The Centre for Cities report compared the economies of 63 large towns and cities in the UK.

It stated people earned £641 on average per week in the town and but added only 22.7 per cent - the third lowest - of people of working age had a high level qualification (NVQ4 or above).

Cllr Peter Smith, Crawley council cabinet member for Planning and Economic Development, said: “Low unemployment and high wages are positive statistics but the best paid jobs tend to be held by people who do not live in Crawley.

“We want to see these jobs held by Crawley people which is why we’re working hard to upskill residents so they are able to benefit from the growing local economy.”

The report ranked Crawley postcodes’ access to superfast broadband third highest; number of patents granted per 100,000 people in the town sixth; proportion of people claiming Job Seekers Allowance tenth from bottom; and a measure of productivity, the average gross value added, tenth best in the country.

Steve Sawyer, executive director of Manor Royal Business District, said: “The report underlines the strength of Crawley’s highly productive and dynamic private sector driven economy. It provides many reasons to feel proud of our town and to celebrate it.

“However, we can’t be complacent. We had to work hard to ensure Manor Royal was enabled for superfast broadband and low job creation, issues of housing affordability and low numbers of highly qualified residents point to real opportunities to ensure Crawley continues to thrive for the benefit of local people and many others that depend on it.”

Cllr Smith added: “Crawley is a major regional business hub and this report helps to enhance the town’s standing as a centre of productivity and innovation, both of which help drive long-term economic growth.

“It validates what we have been doing to support our economy, attract investment and promote our key employment areas. It’s fantastic to get this recognition from independent industry experts.”

The study produced statistics comparing the areas’ housing, industrial structure, jobs and employment, skills and earnings, travel and environment, and welfare.

Crawley scored twelfth highest in a ‘Housing Affordability Ratio’, with an average house price of £261.488.45 in 2015.

Crawley had the highest proportion of private sector jobs excluding manufacturing, and the lowest in public services.

The ratio of private (75,300) to public sector jobs (10,100) was more than twice the UK average (2.8).

The town had the 14th lowest welfare spend per person of £2,971.06 per person in 2014.

* Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.

1) Make our website your homepage at www.crawleyobserver.co.uk

2) Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/crawleyobserver

3) Follow us on Twitter @Crawley_Obby

4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.

And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out!

The Crawley Observer - always the first with your local news.

Be part of it.