Local Economy

The project will provide enormous social and economic enhancements for St Austell Bay.

The Group's initial investment of £250 million – one of the largest private sector investments in Cornwall – is equivalent to 60% of Cornwall’s entire European Convergence Programme 2007 – 2013 at a time of public sector funding cuts.
 

The economy of Cornwall has changed over the past decade, and tourism is a new key generator of jobs and wealth. However, not all areas have benefitted and St. Austell faces some significant economic challenges:
 

	Higher levels of unemployment than the Cornwall average, particularly during winter months when there are on average 50% more unemployed workers than during the summer months;
	A 1.2% decline in jobs in the St. Austell area over the past five years, compared to 7.5% growth in Cornwall overall;
	A lower proportion of tourism-related employment in the St. Austell area (4.6%) compared to Cornwall as a whole (5%), despite having the county’s most visited attraction (Eden Project);
	Localised incidences of deprivation, with some areas within the top 10% nationally most deprived in terms of income and employment.
	High levels of public sector employment which will be imparted by spending units.

Cornwall Council has recently published its draft ‘St Austell, St Blaise and China Clay Area Regeneration Plan’.  It sets out guidelines for considering transformational projects within the area.

The Carlyon Bay Development is in line with many of the plan’s key principles including:

• Connecting communities to the coast
• Delivering new jobs and skills
• A size that can bring about significant changes for the better

Similarly the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Enterprise Partnership identifies the importance of development which provides economic and tourism opportunities. The Carlyon Bay Development supports this strategy. The Economic Statement explains in detail the impacts of the project.