Area type
Region
Population
6,269,161
GDP
£191 billion
Average salary
£36,824
Labour force
3,799,941
Job Density
0.86
View trend
View trend
View breakdown
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in East England was worth an estimated £191 billion in 2019, according to figures published by the ONS. East England's GDP growth between 2018 and 2019 was 3.4% per year. Compare GDP by area.
The Health industry is the largest in East England based on the number of jobs, accounting for 12.4% of roles in the area.
2019 ONS figures suggest that there are 3,268,000 jobs in East England, which has a working-age (aged 16-65) population of 3,799,941. The 2019 job density in East England is 0.86, meaning there are 0.86 jobs per member of the East England working-age population.
East England had a mean average salary for full-time employees of £36,824 in 2021. East England's unemployment rate is 4.4% as of 2021. Compare unemployment rate by area.
The 2019 labour force or working-age population in East England is 3,799,941 or 60.6% of the total population.
In 2021, 95.6% of the labour market was recorded as employed, above the 94.8% average rate for England. Of those employed, 13.2% are self-employed, and 86.8% are employees.
The Annual Population Survey for 2020 published by the ONS reports the percentage of the East England working-age (aged 16-64) population who have a degree or higher is 39.3%, which is below the 42.8% degree qualification rate for England.
Over 58% of the East England working-age population have at least 2 A-levels (or equivalent), and 6% have no qualifications.
Qualifications classifications
Main page: East England Salary
The average salary in East England as of 2021 is £36,824. Between 2020 and 2021, average salaries fell by £174. Compare average salaries by area.
East England's salary growth rate is -0.47% per year based on changes in average salary between 2020 and 2021, which is 0.47% lower than the average salary growth rate in East England over the past 9 years.
In East England, the highest average wages are found in Cambridgeshire where the average salary is £41,321 and the lowest average wages are found in Southend-on-sea where the average salary is £32,418. The difference in average salary between the two areas is £8,903 - the average person in Cambridgeshire earns 27.5% more than the average person in Southend-on-sea.
Business data published by the ONS in 2020 show the most common job group in East England is Administrative Occupations, accounting for 9% 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 East England is Business & Public Service Assoc. Professionals, with roles increasing 26% between July 2020 and July 2021. In England, the fastest-growing type of role is Corporate Managers And Directors.
Occupation | Number | Percentage | CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative Occupations | 285,700 | 9.4% | 13.7% |
| Business & Public Service Assoc. Professionals | 265,000 | 8.7% | 26.3% |
| Corporate Managers And Directors | 255,000 | 8.4% | -13.5% |
| Elementary Administration & Service Occs | 217,000 | 7.1% | -16.7% |
| Science, Research, Engineering And Technology Profs | 208,500 | 6.9% | 9.1% |
There was a 0% increase 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 East England is Health. Other major industries include Business Administration & Support, which represents over 10% of roles in East England.
Financial & Insurance companies make up 2% of the East England economy that's lower than the average for England as a whole (~3%).
4% of the total jobs in East England 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Health | 357,000 | 12.4% |
| Business Administration & Support | 300,000 | 10.4% |
| Retail | 278,000 | 9.7% |
| Professional, Scientific & Technical | 255,000 | 8.9% |
| Education | 249,000 | 8.7% |
The fastest-growing industry in East England is Mining, Quarrying & Utilities, with jobs in the sector increasing 14% between 2019 and 2020 from 29,000 to 33,000. In England more broadly the fastest-growing industry is Healthcare.
The industry with the biggest decline in East England between 2019 and 2020 was Property, which saw an 17% decrease in roles, going from 54,000 to 45,000. 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 East England, the number of roles in this sector has risen by 1% over the past year, below the 1% annual increase seen in England.
East England Demographics
East England Crime
Rental Market of East England
2021 UK Business Count data published by the ONS show there are 965 large businesses in East England, 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 3,955 medium-sized businesses based in East England, making up 1.5% 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 21,890 small businesses based in East England, making up 8.1% of total businesses - in England, 8.3% of businesses are small. A small business is defined as having between 10 and 49 employees.
East England's unemployment rate is 4.4% that's 1% 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 Student, representing 26.0% of the unemployed population.
Secondary classifications include groups: looking after family, long-term sick, retired, 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