South-West Wales

• The latest population of South West Wales is 659,500.
• According to the 2005 Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation, of the 421 Lower Super Output Areas in South West Wales, 48 (11%) are in the top 10% most deprived in Wales.
• 76 per cent of year 11 school leavers in 2006 continued in full-time education. 39 per cent of year 11 leavers remaining in full-time education stayed on school while 61 per cent opted to continue to year 12 in a further education college.
• 67 per cent of all adults of working age have a qualification at level 2 or above, with 25 per cent at level 4 or above. 17 per cent of the working age population have no qualifications.

Economic data

• Gross Value Added in South West Wales was £10.0 billion in 2004.  South West Wales is home to nearly 20,000 VAT registered businesses and has a workforce of 280,000 people.
• At £11,600, GVA per head of the population in South West Wales in 2004 was 68 per cent of the UK average.
• There are 500 VAT registered businesses per 10,000 working age population in South West Wales, compared to 475 for Wales and 519 across the UK.

Labour Market

• At 5.4 per cent, the unemployment rate in South West Wales for the year to March 2007 was much the same as that for Wales as a whole and the UK (both 5.3 per cent).
• The employment rate in South West Wales was 69.9 per cent of the working age population, a little below the Wales average and well below the UK average (71.0 and 74.1 per cent respectively).
• The service sector accounted for 79 per cent of jobs in South West Wales in 2005, a little above the figure for Wales (77 per cent) but below the average for the UK (81 per cent).
• Full-time average earnings in South West Wales in April 2007 were £459.2 per week, below the £472.1 for Wales as a whole and 84 per cent of the UK average.

 

Source: StatsWales

See statistics for all of Wales