About the City
Local economy and community
Cambridge is at the heart of a buoyant sub-region that has experienced high
levels of growth. It is a historic University City with high quality architecture
and pleasant open spaces. It is also a City of national importance, being a
world leader in higher education and many 21st century industries – information
technology, telecommunications and commercial research particularly the biotechnology
sector.
The population of Cambridge is currently 113,600. This is forecast to grow by nearly 22% by 2011 to 137,000 and will reach 146,400 by 2021. The Council is working in partnership with other local Councils and an independent organisation, Cambridgeshire Horizons, to manage the planning for 47,500 new homes in the county by 2016. This has major implications for the way that the City Council delivers its services in the future.
At present 23% of the City’s population are aged 15–24. A significant characteristic of the City’s population is its large and diverse student population, totalling almost 27,000 (including post graduates).
The daytime population of the City increases significantly, with high levels of commuting into the City and very large numbers of tourists and visitors. Last year nearly 4 million people visited the City. The high day time population places pressure on the City’s infrastructure and heavy demands on basic Council services such as street cleaning.
Over 10% of the City’s population are from black and minority communities and 13.7% have a disability or limiting long-term illness. The Council has a strong commitment to addressing equalities issues and celebrating diversity across a range of different needs, including those influenced by gender, race, age, sexuality, disability and belief. The Council works closely with a number of community groups to ensure that services meet their specific needs and that we have a more representative workforce.
Cambridge has one of the highest qualified work forces in the East of England with 41% of people having a degree or higher qualification and relatively speaking the City is affluent. But this affluence does mask disadvantaged communities living in the City, with substantial inequalities between wards. Some wards appear in the 25% most deprived wards in the country, whilst others are in the top 10% of least deprived. One in eleven people living in the City live in a household claiming Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit.
Access to affordable housing is a key issue. In the first quarter of 2005 only 6% of homes in the City sold for under £100,000 with the median price at £196,300. Average earnings in the City for the same year were just over £24,000. This means that it is difficult for key workers to live close to work, due to the high housing costs within the City. Homelessness is also a problem. The Council is landlord for around 8,000 homes in the City, and Registered Social Landlords hold some 3,000 properties. The condition of social housing in the City is fair.