Profile
The Borough comprises urban and rural areas in the South East of Hampshire, between the South Downs and the sea. Geographically it is part of the greater Portsmouth area. Havant is the principle administrative centre, with Hayling Island extending to the south of the borough into Chichester Harbour. The borough has a total area of 7,783 hectares (30 sq.miles), with urban Land 2,976 hectares (11.5 sq.miles) and open land 2,554 hectares (9.8 sq.miles). It has good communications and is the location for a number of companies at the forefront of new technology. Hayling Island within the district is a traditional seaside resort, with two European Blue Flag Award Beaches and offers a range of watersport opportunities.
Population
The Borough has a population of 115,000 and 48,439 households. It is almost five times more densely populated than the average density for Hampshire with 20.7 persons per hectare (5,375 persons per sq. mile). The number of number of dwellings in 2006 were 51,298 and number of households, 49,401. Its population is getting older with projected falls of between 1% and 7% (2006 and 2026 within the 0-04, 05-15, 16-29, 30-44 and 45-64 age groups. Rises are anticipated (between 20 and 66%) in the 65-74, 75-84 and 85+ age groups.
Economic Activity
In 2001 the Borough had 53,234 residents in employment and there were 38,676 jobs in the borough. Total unemployment in 2006 was 2.4%. Retail floorspace in the borough is 1,672,365 sq.ft. (155,363 sq.m). The average total annual income for the Borough in 2004 was £21,954. Forecasts (1996-2011) are for a 5.8% reduction in the number of employees living in Havant Borough, but a 5.1% reduction in the number of unemployed living in Havant Borough and a 2% increase in the percentage of the economically active population with two jobs. Significant Increases in employment are forecast for Distribution (13%), Hotels and Catering (38%), Public Services (2%) and Miscellaneous Services (19%).
Employers
Havant has a number of mechanical, electrical and instrument engineering and high technology skills companies. These include Apollo Fire Detectors (manufacturers of smoke and heat detectors for commercial and industrial applications), BAe Systems (underwater defence systems), NTL (telecommunications providers), Colt International Ltd (ventilators and air vents), Gemplus Ltd (credit cards and discount cards), Kenwood Ltd (manufacturing electrical appliance), Lewmar Marine Ltd (yacht equipment), Snell & Wilcox (design and manufacture digital image processing products), Asahi Thermofil (UK) Ltd (Plastic raw materials), Wyeth Laboratories (pharmaceuticals), Xyratex (manufacturing direct network attached storage, desktop and deskside)
Access
Havant has strong communications. The M27 / A27 coastal trunk route meets the A3(M) London route in Havant and link the south coast towns and their expanding ports, with London and the rest of the south east. Further west the M3 motorway links to the Midlands and the south west. The rail network provides fast coastal and London bound trains, and the major international cargo and passenger port at Portsmouth is close by. Southampton’s port is within 30 minutes drive time, Southampton International Airport is just 20 minutes drive time away, and London Heathrow and Gatwick Airports are about a 75 minute drive.
Tourism
Tourism is an important wealth and employment creating sector of the local economy. It is estimated to contribute £160m annually to the local economy, 7% of spend in Hampshire. Some 352,000 staying trips are made with a value of £54m compared with 1.9m day trips contributing £62m. The major attraction of the Borough as a tourism destination is the extensive shoreline especially around Hayling Island with Blue Flag and seaside award winning beaches. Emsworth also attracts a number of visitors but has a substantially smaller accommodation base than Hayling Island. The town has an annual Food Festival which is gaining in popularity.
The Goodwood Estate with its range of horse-racing and motorsport events is close-by and provides an important market for accommodation. The important Hayling Island Sailing Club which is the RYA’s Centre of Excellence on the South Coast also hosts a regular calendar of national and international sailing events.
Links:
Havant Borough Council
PDFs:
Specific Development Sites: