Area type
Metropolitan District
Population
248,071
GDP
£4.8 billion
Average salary
£31,739
Labour force
153,077
Job Density
0.64
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The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Barnsley was worth an estimated £4.8 billion in 2019, according to figures published by the ONS. Barnsley's GDP growth between 2018 and 2019 was 4.3% per year. Compare GDP by area.
The Manufacturing industry is the largest in Barnsley based on the number of jobs, accounting for 15.5% of roles in the area.
2019 ONS figures suggest that there are 98,000 jobs in Barnsley, which has a working-age (aged 16-65) population of 153,077. The 2019 job density in Barnsley is 0.64, meaning there are 0.64 jobs per member of the Barnsley working-age population.
Barnsley had a mean average salary for full-time employees of £31,739 in 2021. Barnsley's unemployment rate is 3.5% as of 2021. Compare unemployment rate by area.
The 2019 labour force or working-age population in Barnsley is 153,077 or 61.7% of the total population.
In 2021, 96.5% of the labour market was recorded as employed, above the 94.8% average rate for England. Of those employed, 12.3% are self-employed, and 87.7% are employees.
The Annual Population Survey for 2020 published by the ONS reports the percentage of the Barnsley working-age (aged 16-64) population who have a degree or higher is 28.4%, which is below the 42.8% degree qualification rate for England.
Over 53% of the Barnsley working-age population have at least 2 A-levels (or equivalent), and 9% have no qualifications.
Qualifications classifications
Main page: Barnsley Salary
The average salary in Barnsley as of 2021 is £31,739. Between 2020 and 2021, average salaries grew by £347. Compare average salaries by area.
Barnsley's salary growth rate is 1.11% per year based on changes in average salary between 2020 and 2021, which is 1.11% higher than the average salary growth rate in Barnsley over the past 9 years.
Business data published by the ONS in 2020 show the most common job group in Barnsley is Caring Personal Service Occupations, accounting for 11% of all roles in the area. In England as a whole, the largest job group is Business & Public Service Assoc. Professionals.
The fastest-growing type of job in Barnsley is Science, Research, Engineering And Technology Profs, with roles increasing 62% between July 2020 and July 2021. In England, the fastest-growing type of role is Corporate Managers And Directors.
Occupation | Number | Percentage | CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caring Personal Service Occupations | 12,200 | 10.8% | -3.9% |
| Elementary Administration & Service Occs | 11,400 | 10.1% | -4.2% |
| Corporate Managers And Directors | 9,500 | 8.4% | 31.9% |
| Business & Public Service Assoc. Professionals | 8,400 | 7.4% | 2.4% |
| Administrative Occupations | 7,600 | 6.7% | -21.6% |
There was a 2% decrease in roles between 2019 and 2020. In England as a whole, there was a 2% decrease.
Based on the total number of jobs, the largest industry in Barnsley is Manufacturing. Other major industries include Health, which represents over 10% of roles in Barnsley.
Financial & Insurance companies make up 1% of the Barnsley economy that's lower than the average for England as a whole (~3%).
1% of the total jobs in Barnsley are in Information and Communication, one of the key sectors for the future, below the 5% of jobs in England as a whole.
Industry | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 13,000 | 15.5% |
| Health | 12,000 | 14.3% |
| Retail | 8,000 | 9.6% |
| Business Administration & Support | 8,000 | 9.6% |
| Education | 7,000 | 8.4% |
The fastest-growing industry in Barnsley is Public Administration & Defence, with jobs in the sector increasing 71% between 2019 and 2020 from 1,750 to 3,000. In England more broadly the fastest-growing industry is Healthcare.
The industry with the biggest decline in Barnsley between 2019 and 2020 was Information & communication, which saw an 33% decrease in roles, going from 1,500 to 1,000. In England more broadly the industry with the biggest year on year decline was Arts, entertainment & recreation, with roles decreasing by 8%.
The Information and communication industry includes many of the top companies of the future. In Barnsley, the number of roles in this sector has fallen by 33% over the past year, below the 1% annual increase seen in England.
Barnsley Demographics
Barnsley Crime
Rental Market of Barnsley
2021 UK Business Count data published by the ONS show there are 30 large businesses in Barnsley, making up 0.4% of total businesses - in England, 0.4% of businesses are large. A large business is defined as having over 250 employees.
There are 95 medium-sized businesses based in Barnsley, making up 1.4% of total businesses - in England, 1.5% of businesses are medium-sized. A medium-sized business is defined as having between 50 and 249 employees.
There are 650 small businesses based in Barnsley, making up 9.4% of total businesses - in England, 8.3% of businesses are small. A small business is defined as having between 10 and 49 employees.
Barnsley's unemployment rate is 3.5% that's 2% lower than the average unemployment rate for England as a whole. Unemployment rates are the number of unemployed people as a percentage of the working-age population.
The main group within the unemployment population is Long-term Sick, representing 37.3% of the unemployed population.
Secondary classifications include groups: student, looking after family, other, all of which represent over 10% of the unemployed population.
In England as a whole, students are the main group within the unemployed population, accounting for 28.9% of the unemployed population.
Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2021. Data sources: ONS Local statistics