The South East accounts for 9% of the sector’s workforce in England and 7% in the UK.  The South East has 12% of the food and drink manufacturing enterprises in England and 9% in the UK.  The average estimated annual business turnover is the region is £775,057.

The sector workforce is better qualified than all sectors in England workforce and the UK workforce.  25% of the regional workforce in food and drink manufacturing and processing is qualified at Level 4 or higher, compared with 17% in England and in the UK.  56% of the sector’s workforce are qualified with to Level 2 or below, compared with 66% in England and 65% in the UK.

In the South East, 35% of employers in the sector report vacancies, compared with 35% of employers in England.  Only two regions, Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East, have a lower proportion of employers reporting vacancies.  5% of employers in the region report hard-to-fill vacancies, compared with 8% in England.  9% of regional employers in the sector report skill shortage vacancies, similar to the proportion in England.

Source: At a Glance – South East 2005 and Roger Seed Professional Services/Westley Consulting Ltd. 2004

For more regional data go to the Improve website.