Brighton and Hove

The Economy and Industry of Brighton and Hove

The city of Brighton and Hove is a conurbation of 82 square km with just under a quarter of a million inhabitants. It is rich in diversity and creativity, attracting people from across the UK and Europe to live, work and study.

The economy has enjoyed impressive growth since the mid-1990s and is now a key driver of the south east regional economy. Unemployment has fallen to 3% and the number of people in work has increased by 9,000 since 1998. The city has a high business start up rate and a high proportion of freelancers and self employed people, reflecting its dynamic and entrepreneurial nature.

The city's economy is predominantly service sector based with a strong financial and business services and a dynamic and well-established new media cluster. Brighton and Hove is also a well estabished international tourist and conference destination, which operates throughout the year. More than 8 million people visit the city each year for holidays, business or day trips. These sectors have made a significant contribution to the city's strong economic performance.

A range of proposed new developments, including a new ice rink complex at Black Rock, Frank Gehry's spectacular proposals for the King Alfred leisure centre and the proposed development of the community stadium will consolidate Brighton and Hove as one of the nation's premier cities by the sea.

Businesses in Brighton and Hove benefit from having two well-established universities which work closely with local knowledge businesses to develop products and to provide a high-quality, local workforce. The city also has excellent rail links to Gatwick Airport and to London, providing markets for the city's growing number of outward-looking and innovative businesses.

The excellent quality of life that Brighton and Hove offers has attracted a high number of creative and innovative people to the city. There is a wide range of restaurants, bars and clubs, which along with the impressive arts and cultural street events, have boosted the city's evening and night-time economy.

There are a range of generic and specialist business support organisations to support local businesses. Business Link and the Brighton, Hove and Lewes Enterprise Agency provide generic business support, whilst Wired Sussex and the Brighton Media Centre provide sector specialist support to companies in the media sector.

The labour force

Brighton and Hove has a young, dynamic and well-educated resident population. One third of all local residents are aged 25-44 years – the most economically dynamic section of the population. The city retains a high proportion of its graduates once they have left university. This, and the tendency for highly qualified people to come to Brighton and Hove to live, means that the city has a highly skilled labour pool. 29% of the adult population in the city hold a degree or equivalent level qualification – much higher than the national or regional average.

Employment in Brighton and Hove is disproportionately in management, professional and associate professional occupations, which generally require people to have higher levels skill. 47.8% of people work in these occupations, compared to 40.1% in England and Wales.

The city has a non-white minority ethnic population of 5.8% and also attracts a high number of speakers of other European languages to study and work throughout the year. There are an estimated 35,000 language students who come to the city each year and more than 30 language schools in the city. Many of these students look for employment locally, during and after their courses.

Overseas Companies

Overseas companies include American Express Europe, Alamo Rent-a-Car, parent co Republic Industries Automotive Europe, GMAC Commercial Credit, DataproComputers, UnipowerEurope and West Instruments which are all American. EcovertSouth, Entrelec(UK) Ltd, Le Carbone and SITA are French and HosidenBesson is from Japan. Kimberly Clark, the multinational American sanitary products giant has its European services centre in Brighton and Hove.

Education and Training

The Sussex Learning and Skills Council's headquarters is located in Brighton and Hove. The city has 17 secondary schools, including ten maintained schools, two specialist schools and five independent schools. There are also nine specialist secondary schools in the city. Maintained post-16 education is provided in four of the secondary schools and in the three sixth form and further education colleges – BHASVIC, Varndean and City College.

Overall, GCSE achievement in the city remains below the national average. In 2002, 45.6% of 15 year olds achieved five GCSEs A*-C grades, compared to 51.6% in England. A slightly lower proportion of 16 year olds remain in full-time education and training than nationally.

GCE and VCE results are good in the city, however. The average point score per examination entry for 16-18 year olds is 77.8 points, compared to 76.0 points nationally.

Brighton and Hove's two universities have more than 30,000 full and part-time students and have together just established the city's new medical school – The Brighon and Sussex medical school – which had its first intake of students in October 2003.

Communications

London Gatwick international airport is 26 minutes by frequent train services and 35 minutes by road from Brighton. London Heathrow airport is 70 minutes by road, entirely on dual carriageway trunk roads and motorways. There is also the Jetlinkdirect coach service which operates every 30 minutes, seven days a week. Brighton and Hove has its own airport at Shoreham for business aviation. Seasonally there are up to three daily departures by fast ferry to France via Newhaven / Dieppe. The M25 London Orbital motorway is within a 30 minute drive-time via the A23/M23, and the dual carriageway A27 provides good east-west access.

The telecommunications infrastructure in Brighton and Hove is well developed, enabling local businesses to have access to broadband and other communications technologies. According to Sussex Enterprise's Annual Business Survey, nearly 80% of businesses in Brighton and Hove have access to the Internet and just under 50% of businesses access the Internet via broadband.

Land and Property

Brighton and Hove is surrounded by the sea to the south and the south Downs to the north, restricting opportunities to develop beyond the city's boundaries. This ensures that a key priority for the city is to make best use of its existing commercial and industrial property. Despite falls in the availability of commercial office space in recent years, business space remains good value, compared to many other areas in the south east.

There are a number of serviced office accommodations, some of which are high profile and prestigious, located within easy access of the railway terminus and the city centre and which are designed to meet the needs of R&D and new media entrepreneurs. High-tech offices and incubator units such as the high profile Sussex Innovation Centre provides accommodation and specialist business support for new high-growth businesses with links to the universities. There are existing plans for major mixed use developments at locations such as the Brighton Station site and Preston Barracks.

Financial Assistance

The European Union has awarded Enterprise Grant status to all of Brighton and Hove's 21 wards and Assisted Area status to 17 selected wards. Tier 2 Assisted Area wards: Portslade South, Wish, Nevill, Westbourne, Vallance, Brunswick and Adelaide, Goldsmid, Regency, Seven Dials, St Peters, Queens Park, King's Cliff, Marine, Rottingdean, Woodingdean, Hanover, Moulsecoomb.

Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) grants are also available, providing up to 15% towards costs for companies looking to expand, relocate or create jobs in the Brighton and Hove, Lewes and Adur district county regions. For more information and free advice contact Paul Jordan, Grants Advisor, on +44 (0)1273 292 734.

New to Brighton?

Welcome to the city by the sea. Brighton and Hove City Council's website has information for visitors and new residents including information on parking, requesting permits, schools and council tax. Visit the Brighton and Hove City Council website at www.brighton-hove.gov.uk.