Area type
County
Population
546,924
GDP
£11 billion
Average salary
£32,406
Labour force
319,384
Job Density
0.71
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The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in East Sussex was worth an estimated £11 billion in 2020, according to figures published by the ONS. East Sussex's GDP growth between 2019 and 2020 was -3.2% per year. Compare GDP by area.
The Health industry is the largest in East Sussex based on the number of jobs, accounting for 17.7% of roles in the area.
2020 ONS figures suggest that there are 227,000 jobs in East Sussex, which has a working-age (aged 16-65) population of 319,384. The 2020 job density in East Sussex is 0.71, meaning there are 0.71 jobs per member of the East Sussex working-age population.
East Sussex had a mean average salary for full-time employees of £32,406 in 2022. East Sussex's unemployment rate is 4.0% as of 2022. Compare unemployment rate by area.
The 2020 labour force or working-age population in East Sussex is 319,384 or 58.4% of the total population.
In 2022, 96.0% of the labour market was recorded as employed, above the 94.8% average rate for England. Of those employed, 19.9% are self-employed, and 80.1% are employees.
The Annual Population Survey for 2021 published by the ONS reports the percentage of the East Sussex working-age (aged 16-64) population who have a degree or higher is 35.3%, which is below the 42.8% degree qualification rate for England.
Over 58% of the East Sussex working-age population have at least 2 A-levels (or equivalent), and 7% have no qualifications.
Qualifications classifications
Main page: East Sussex Salary
The average salary in East Sussex as of 2022 is £32,406. Between 2021 and 2022, average salaries grew by £677. Compare average salaries by area.
East Sussex's salary growth rate is 2.13% per year based on changes in average salary between 2021 and 2022, which is 2.13% higher than the average salary growth rate in East Sussex over the past 9 years.
In East Sussex, the highest average wages are found in Rother where the average salary is £34,785 and the lowest average wages are found in Hastings where the average salary is £28,236. The difference in average salary between the two areas is £6,549 - the average person in Rother earns 23.2% more than the average person in Hastings.
Business data published by the ONS in 2021 show the most common job group in East Sussex is Caring Personal Service Occupations, accounting for 8% 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 Sussex is Other Managers And Proprietors, with roles increasing 70% between July 2021 and July 2022. In England, the fastest-growing type of role is Corporate Managers And Directors.
Occupation | Number | Percentage | CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caring Personal Service Occupations | 21,700 | 8.3% | -18.4% |
| Corporate Managers And Directors | 20,200 | 7.8% | -9.8% |
| Administrative Occupations | 20,200 | 7.8% | -8.6% |
| Teaching And Educational Professionals | 19,900 | 7.7% | 47.4% |
| Business & Public Service Assoc. Professionals | 19,000 | 7.3% | -15.9% |
There was a 5% increase in roles between 2020 and 2021. In England as a whole, there was a 3% decrease.
Based on the total number of jobs, the largest industry in East Sussex is Health. Other major industries include Retail, which represents over 10% of roles in East Sussex.
Financial & Insurance companies make up 2% of the East Sussex economy that's lower than the average for England as a whole (~3%).
2% of the total jobs in East Sussex 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 | 35,000 | 17.7% |
| Retail | 22,000 | 11.1% |
| Accommodation & Food Services | 18,000 | 9.1% |
| Education | 17,000 | 8.6% |
| Construction | 13,000 | 6.6% |
The fastest-growing industry in East Sussex is Transport & Storage, with jobs in the sector increasing 80% between 2020 and 2021 from 5,000 to 9,000. In England more broadly the fastest-growing industry is Healthcare.
The industry with the biggest decline in East Sussex between 2020 and 2021 was Information & communication, which saw an 10% decrease in roles, going from 5,000 to 4,500. 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 Sussex, the number of roles in this sector has fallen by 10% over the past year, below the 1% annual increase seen in England.
East Sussex Demographics
East Sussex Crime
Rental Market of East Sussex
2022 UK Business Count data published by the ONS show there are 45 large businesses in East Sussex, making up 0.2% of total businesses - in England, 0.4% of businesses are large. A large business is defined as having over 250 employees.
There are 280 medium-sized businesses based in East Sussex, making up 1.2% 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 1,840 small businesses based in East Sussex, making up 7.9% of total businesses - in England, 8.3% of businesses are small. A small business is defined as having between 10 and 49 employees.
East Sussex's unemployment rate is 4.0% 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 Long-term Sick, representing 31.8% of the unemployed population.
Secondary classifications include groups: student, looking after family, 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 2022. Data sources: ONS Local statistics