Chief Executive Recruitment

Local Information

South Lakeland

The Covid pandemic has had a major impact on the district’s economy and communities and its aftermath will be with us for many years. South Lakeland District Council has declared a climate emergency. It has set carbon reduction targets and developed an action plan to meet them. The council has also declared a poverty emergency.

Compared to many parts of Cumbria and Lancashire, South Lakeland is prosperous with relatively low levels of most types of deprivation.

This, however, masks some significant inequalities. Some of the key facts that illustrate this include:

• Median house prices across South Lakeland are almost seven times the average annual household income and up to 12 times income in some parts of the district and there are around 4,000 households on the Social Housing Register.
• 2% of households in South Lakeland have an annual household income of under £10,000 and 7% of children live in low-income households.
• 13% of households are in fuel poverty – driven both by low incomes and high heating costs in older, less well insulated homes.

There is major variation in life expectancy across the district, with men living 3.4 years longer and women living 4 years longer in the least deprived areas than the most deprived areas.

• Recent population and household projections suggest that the decline in the district population identified in previous years has been arrested and the population is starting to grow again.
• Our population is forecast to rise from 105,300 to 110,200 by 2040.
• This also means that the number of households increasing from 48,200 to 52,100, around 191 per year.
• However, a major concern is that the South Lakeland population is ageing. By 2040, there are projected to be 3,200 fewer people of working age and 8,700 more people over 65.