Southampton is recognised as the commercial, cultural and retail capital of the south coast with a population of around 221,200. It has strong links to the sea with its proximity to the famous waters of the Solent and is home port to the QEII and Queen Mary and the new generation of cruise liners. Leisure and sporting facilities include the home of Southampton FC "The Saints" and The Rose Bowl home to Hampshire Cricket Club which also hosts international and Twenty20 cricket. The Southampton Boat Show, the largest show of its kind in Europe, takes place every September. Southampton has two universities and its excellent road and train connections make travel to other parts of the UK and Europe easy.
Southampton is the largest city in the South East outside London. It is a cosmopolitan city that is home to 221,200 people speaking over 40 languages. The city's population amounts to approximately 0.4% of the UK population; 2.8% of the South East and 17.8% of the Hampshire area. Of those living in the city, there are generally more men than women but in the 'older people' group women outnumber men by 9,200. Around 2/3 of Southampton's residents are of working age, the rate of 66.7% is higher than the South East region's rate of 65.1% and the national rate of 62%. The University of Southampton and Southampton Solent University together have a student population of over 31,000.
In 2003 Southampton's economy was worth £4,031 million. This was 52.40% more than in 1995. The GVA per head in the city was £18,237 and was higher than the regional value of £17,631. The economy, formerly based on traditional manufacturing industries and port-related activities is now more diverse. There are around 7,200 businesses operating in the city and around 105,000 people have employment in Southampton either as employees or self-employed. The most significant sectors in terms of number of businesses and number of employees are distribution, tourism, business and finance related activities. Southampton along with Portsmouth are two cities driving the development of the wider South Hampshire sub-region's economy. Together they provide more than 48% of the 399,600 jobs in the sub-region.
Southampton is ranked 7th for shopping in the UK. Southampton Airport serves more than 1.4 million passengers and is forecast to serve around 6 million passengers by 2030. The Airport will contribute £260 million per year to the local economy by 2030.
Companies such as Royal Bank of Scotland, Ford, Philips Semi-conductors, Ordnance Survey, Skandia and Merck have headquarters in the Southampton Region. Southampton has a strong marine industry. It is the UK's leading vehicle handling and premier cruise port as well as being home to Southampton Oceanography Centre - one the world's leading centres for research and education in marine and earth sciences. Chilworth Science Park is home to more than 30 science and technology based companies from fledgling enterprises in the Incubator Unit through to businesses that lead the world in the fields of biotechnology, software design, satellite technology and materials research.
The city has excellent communication links that contribute to developing the local economy. Southampton Airport has regular flights to UK and major European cities. Heathrow and Gatwick Airports are easily accessible by road and rail. The M3/M27 interchange provides access to the national motorway network bringing the M25 within a 45 minute drive.
The visitor economy in Southampton is annually worth around £300m, comprising some 12% of Hampshire’s tourism business turnover. This comprises 3,439,000 trips of which 615,000 are staying and 2,824,00 are day trips. Overseas staying trips comprise 71,000 and 0.55 million nights. The city also plays host annually to some 750,000 cruise passengers.
As a regional centre for culture, Southampton has a significant number of art galleries, including the internationally recognised Southampton Art Gallery which has the finest collection of 20th Century British Art in the UK, along with theatres, music venues, and cinemas. The Friends Provident St Mary's stadium hosted an Elton John concert in 2005 and the city looks forward to welcoming other major pop acts in the future. Other important attractions include the Maritime Museum, Solent Sky aviation museum, Museum of Archaeology, Medieval Merchants House, Tudor House Museum and Millais Gallery.
Southampton is a major centre for retail with three city centre shopping centres including the award winning WestQuay shopping mall. The Southampton Boat Show, the largest show of its kind in Europe, takes place every September and was visited by about 122,000 people in 2005. Southampton has a number of other successful annual festivals such as the Kite Festival, Euroblade and Sports Boat and Rib Show; and in 2005 the first Garden Festival took place.
Recent development at Charlotte Place has included a Jury’s Inn Hotel (270 bedrooms) plus residential units (£30 million). Also a £10 million major refurbishment programme at two existing cruise terminals as well as constructing a third dedicated terminal is underway. On-going development at Ocean Village (£80 million) is also taking place.
Proposed development includes Woolston Riverside (£345 million), Northern Above Bar - Cultural Quarter (£30 million), West Quay Phase 3 (Casino/hotel/residential/arena//plaza) - £215 million.
| Jeff Walters Economic Development Manager 023 8083 2256 jeff.walters@southampton.gov.uk |
David Wood Tourism Manager 023 8083 4509 david.wood@southampton.gov.uk |
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