Observatory (Archive)
10 Feb 2015
Active People Survey Analysis 8
The Active People Survey tracks the number of people taking part in sport at region, county sport partnership and local authority level. We have used the results from the ASP8...
Read more
29 Jan 2015
The labour market in your area
Employment is crucial for any successful local economy. As such, the below analysis takes a look at a selection of key employment statistics from the Office for National Statistics. Analysis of...
Read more
27 Nov 2014
A brief look at wage levels and self-employment
Bringing together data from the Office for National Statistics, it is possible to build a clear picture of lower average income for those working in rural areas. This has obvious...
Read more
27 Oct 2014
Recorded Crime
Police forces in England and Wales are required to send police recorded crime data to the Home Office. The following analysis takes this quarterly data over the period September 2012...
Read more
15 Oct 2014
Cycling Use For Non Recreational Purposes
The Government has an ambition for increased levels of cycling, and it is easy to see how it would be beneficial both in easing road congestion as well as increasing...
Read more
28 Aug 2014
Local Authority Businesses
The risks and opportunities available for business in rural local authority areas can be quite unique from those in urban areas. As a result the rate of new businesses created...
Read more
28 Aug 2014
Local Authority Winter Maintenance Fleet
Rural local authority areas have lower population densities, but many services need to be provided despite an area potentially having fewer people living there. This is reflected when looking at...
Read more
21 Aug 2014
Affordable Ratio Analysis
The online article ‘The 62 areas where houses are less affordable than London’, taken from the BBC News website, reflects the struggles of many people living in or looking to...
Read more
15 May 2014
Take up of formal childcare by low income working families
Take-up of formal childcare by low income families can bring benefits to children’s learning and development. This analysis looks at an authorities comparative situation against the rural/urban averages for all...
Read more
01 May 2014
The Cost of Providing Swimming Facilities in Rural Communities
Local authority managed leisure facilities such as swimming pools are increasingly under pressure to make efficiency savings or even survival. With this view, the following is a brief look at...
Read more