New research has revealed the UK areas most dominated by one industry.
The study comes from the marketing training hub School of Marketing and the outcome has been provided to Digital Journal. The original data comes from the UK government’s Office of National Statistics. The School of Marketing has analysed the data to see the number of businesses from each industry in every local authority to find the areas dominated the most by a single sector. The assessment also considered the job or type of job that a person has.
It was found that the Northern Irish area of Fermanagh and Omagh is most dominated by agricultural, forestry and fishing businesses, with 40.30 percent of all businesses in the area being from this industry, the highest in the list. It is one of two Northern Irish authorities on the list, with Mid Ulster being the other entry, also dominated primarily by agriculture. Around 75 per cent (about 100,000 square kilometres) of Northern Ireland’s countryside is farmed in some way.
The Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands take second and third respectively, again dominated by agricultural businesses. In the Orkney Islands, 37.07 percent of all businesses are in agriculture, followed very closely by the Shetland Islands with 37.04 percent.
The Worcestershire area of Bromsgrove is an example of an entry not dominated by agriculture, with 32.43 percent of all businesses in the area defined as being part of the business administration and support services industry.
Professional, scientific, and technical businesses were found to dominate in the City of London authority, making up 31.17 percent of all businesses in the Central London area. Specific kinds of businesses in the industry include legal, bookkeeping, scientific research, and marketing businesses.
The Northamptonshire area of Wellingborough rounds out the list in tenth place, with 30.99% of all businesses in the arts, entertainment, and recreation industry. Businesses in this industry include libraries, zoos, gyms, theme parks and museums.
| # | Area | Industry | % of all businesses |
| 1 | Fermanagh and Omagh | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 40.30% |
| 2 | Orkney Islands | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 37.07% |
| 3 | Shetland Islands | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 37.04% |
| 4 | Powys | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 34.15% |
| 5 | Bromsgrove | Business administration & support services | 32.43% |
| 6 | Mid Ulster | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 31.58% |
| 7 | Eden | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 31.36% |
| 8 | Torridge | Agriculture, forestry & fishing | 31.20% |
| 9 | City of London | Professional, scientific & technical services | 31.17% |
| 10 | Wellingborough | Arts, entertainment, recreation & other services | 30.99% |
Overall, the agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry were the most common industry for businesses, with seven entries in the top ten and 22 in the top 50. Other notable dominant industries included the professional, scientific, and technical industry and the construction industry.
Commenting on the findings, Ritchie Mehta, CEO of the School of Marketing, tells Digital Journal: “It’s fascinating to see the variety all around in these results, with areas from all around the UK making their way into the list. This data shows that some industries really dominate in certain areas of the UK, however that doesn’t mean there’s only one type of job available, as there can be a huge variety of roles within a business sector.
“When it comes to skills, there are some common themes that employers are looking for across a range of jobs, however in the current climate, budgets for training are likely to be cut, and the skills gap could widen. SME owners can take advantage of the Apprenticeship Levy scheme to bring in new staff or train current ones in digital and data-led programmes, with the vast majority of the training cost covered by the levy.”
