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National Lottery Charities Board North West






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Regional Breakdown


North West Profile 


    
  
  •  The North West region covers the largest geographical region in England 
    - incorporating the five counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Merseyside 
    and Lancashire. 
    • 
  
  •  The region has two Government offices - the North West GO based in Manchester 
    (which covers Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cheshire and Cumbria) and Merseyside 
    GO which is based in Liverpool. 
    • 
  
  •  Local government consists of 28 district or borough councils within the 
    three County Council Districts of Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria. Merseyside 
    and Greater Manchester do not have County Councils but consist of 15 Metropolitan 
    Borough Councils. 
    • 
  
  •  There are also 18 Health Authority districts in the North West. Their 
    boundaries, however, do not coincide with LA Districts.
    • 
  
  •   The majority of the population and industry lies in the Mersey Belt area 
    which includes Merseyside and Greater Manchester and spreads north into Lancashire 
    and south into Cheshire. Manchester acts as the regional capital for most 
    purposes. Liverpool hosts many regional functions. 
    • 
  
  •  Despite the extent of urbanisation some 80 per cent of the region remains agricultural 
    land - in the counties of Cumbria, Cheshire and Lancashire. 
    • 



Economy and Transport 


    
  
  •   Areas within the region vary widely - from isolated rural communities 
    where public transport provision is poor or non-existent (in these areas car 
    ownership can be regarded as a necessity) to densely populated inner city 
    areas where public transport can be erratic and expensive for people on low 
    incomes.
    • 
  
  •  Much of the region's manufacturing base has declined in the last 25 years 
    leaving significant problems of pollution, dereliction and poor housing. 
    • 
  
  •  The North West has been designated a disadvantaged priority region by 
    the European Union. This attracts resources consisting of the European Regional 
    Development Fund (which helps less advantaged regions of the EU compete on 
    equal terms), the European Social Fund which is aimed at training and job 
    creation initiatives and the guidance section of the European Agricultural 
    Fund to improve the agricultural and rural areas. In many cases awards are 
    conditional on match funding which can be problematic for organisations in 
    the voluntary sector.
    • 
  
  •   The region has higher than average unemployment rates. The highest rate 
    for unemployment is 21.6 per cent in Liverpool which is three times the lowest rate 
    of 6.3 per cent for South and East Cheshire. In Manchester almost 40 per cent of children 
    live in households with no wage earner compared with just over 10 per cent in Cheshire. 
  
    • 



Population 


    
  
  •  At present the region�s population is 6.9 million - the highest outside 
    of the London region. 
    • 
  
  •  The percentage population in each county is :- Greater Manchester - 37 
    per cent Merseyside - 21 per cent Lancashire - 21 per cent Cheshire - 14 per 
    cent Cumbria - 7 per cent 
    • 
  
  •  The greatest concentrations are in Merseyside and Greater Manchester (4.6 
    million), Blackpool and Liverpool have the highest densities close to the 
    highest outside London. 
    • 
  
  •  There has been a marked decline in the region's population - 1 per cent 
    in contrast with a growth of 3.3 per cent in England. This decline is specific 
    to metropolitan areas of Merseyside and Greater Manchester (Liverpool and 
    Knowsley among highest LA districts nationally) and is attributed to net out 
    migration. 
    • 
  
  •  Populations in Cumbria vary with areas of economic decline eg., Barrow-in-Furness 
    and parts of Copeland experiencing a decrease of 1.3 per cent to 1.9 per cent (between 1981 
    and 1991). This contrasts sharply with more affluent areas - Eden and South 
    Lakeland which have seen an increase of 3.1 per cent to 5.2 per cent for the same period. 
  
    • 
  
  •  Many changes are forecast in the age structure of the population. The 
    over 85 age group is forecast to double between 1981 and 2000 whereas the 
    75 to 84 age group will remain stable. The 65 to 74 age group is showing a 
    steady decline towards the year 2000. 
    • 
  
  •  Black and minority ethnic populations are concentrated in relatively few 
    urban areas in the region. Merseyside has only two wards where over 20 per cent are 
    from these groups, which were self defined in the 1991 census. Much greater 
    concentrations are found in Greater Manchester, including Manchester city, 
    Bolton and Rochdale. The Lancashire towns of Blackburn, Burnley and Preston 
    also have high proportions of black and minority ethnic groups.