The Region

The East of England comprises the six counties of Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire, and four unitary authorities - Peterborough, Thurrock, Southend and Luton. It is home to approximately 5.6 million people and 430,000 businesses.

The region is a thriving area, and has enjoyed one of the fastest growing economies in the country. In 2008 Cambridgeshire had an employment rate of 77.9%, compared with 74.2% nationally, and a high skill  level with 34.1% of adults qualified to degree level, compared with 28.7% nationally.

The area is home to a broad range of sectors, including agriculture, biotechnology, service industry, construction, and manufacturing, which provide employment for the local population.

In addition to industry, the region also attracts some of the brightest minds in the country to study in one of its many universities, most notably the University of Cambridge, but also the University of East Anglia, Anglia Ruskin University, University College Suffolk, University of Hertfordshire, University of Essex, University of Bedfordshire, and Cranfield University.

Research and development expenditure is a high proportion of economic output than any other region in the UK. The bulk of this activity takes place in the Cambridge Cluster, and also in the Cambridge-Ipswich High-Tech corridor and the Oxford-Cambridge Arc.

The region is served by the Government Offices for the East of England (GO-East), the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) and the East of England Regional Assembly (EERA).

There are three significant growth areas within the East of England: the London-Stansted-Cambridge-Peterborough growth area, part of the Thames Gateway scheme, and part of the Milton Keynes and South Midlands area. All of these key growth areas, in addition with other development sites, have been identified in the RSS to help ease the increasing pressure on housing, transport and other services and facilities within the region.