Read the full report on the link above.
The key findings:
Coastal communities feel their issues are being ignored by those in power
There is a prevailing sense that coastal areas are misunderstood and ignored by those in power. Nearly eight in ten (79 per cent) say the government in Westminster doesn’t understand their area while just 2 per cent said it understands the area very well. Meanwhile, nearly half (46 per cent) of those surveyed say they feel like the area rarely comes up in public debate.
Coastal respondents see particular decline in the local job market. 75 per cent say the types of jobs available have changed significantly in their lifetime, with a majority (61 per cent) saying local job opportunities have worsened over the last ten years. It is perhaps no wonder, then, that 58 per cent of 18-34 year olds in coastal communities say they are considering or actively trying to move away from their local area, with 69 per cent of coastal respondents saying it is jobs and career opportunities that drive people away. This is a preventable exodus that can be stemmed by further investment.
Young coastal residents see a brighter future for their area, but are in danger of being driven away
Despite the prevailing sense among coastal respondents that their area is worse now than it was ten years ago, there remains a sense of optimism among the young. 18-34 year-olds in coastal areas are significantly more likely than any other age bracket to say that their local area is better now than it was ten years ago (25 per cent). They’re also almost twice as likely to say they expect their area to be better in ten years’ time than worse (42 per cent vs 23 per cent).
The positivity this group feels around the future may stem from a sense that there is untapped potential in the area, which young people are most likely to see – 53 per cent of 18-34s, versus around a third of the over-65s, say their area has economic opportunities not being made the most of. This positivity makes the fact that so many say they are considering leaving their area even bleaker. These are young people who like their areas but worry the lack of opportunity will mean they cannot stay.
Coastal residents think their area gives more than it gets back, especially Labour’s target voters
Coastal residents believe they give more than they get back, and that the economic value they create through local business and industry often leaks away. 38 per cent say their area contributes more to the country than it receives in return, while just 12 per cent say the reverse. The same pattern holds for the economic benefits of local work and business. Only 24 per cent think these benefits stay within the local area, while 43 per cent say they flow to other parts of the UK – 21 per cent to London specifically.
The sense that coastal areas give more than they get is particularly strong among Labour (45 per cent) and Reform (44 per cent) voters, suggesting that government action to redress this perceived imbalance would appeal across the very coalition it is keen to win over. Reform voters in coastal areas are also the most likely of any party group to say the benefits of local business flow elsewhere (51 per cent). For this bloc of voters, keeping economic gains in the local area is clearly a key concern.
Coastal areas think they can be economic powerhouses – and clean energy is key
Coastal residents believe that their areas can become powerhouses again. Six in ten (60 per cent) say it is realistic that their area could become an economic hub for manufacturing, shipping and clean energy again against 32 per cent who are doubtful, signalling a strong sense
of optimism about their areas’ futures. Britain as a whole is also optimistic that this could be the case, with 55 per cent of the wider British public thinking this prospect is realistic.
Coastal residents think clean energy will be central if the powerhouse dream is to become a reality. 71 per cent of those in coastal areas would back government investment in wind farms, energy storage or carbon capture in their local area, against just 10 per cent opposed, a view that holds across regions and voter groups. However, coastal communities’ support for clean energy would appear to be based on economic, not environmental, foundations. Nearly seven in ten (69 per cent) say it matters more that clean energy investment brings jobs and investment to their area than that it helps the country reach net zero (20 per cent). That economic framing holds across every region, age group, financial bracket and voting intention -at least 60 per cent in each group.
Coastal communities in Wales are less likely to think they contribute to the national picture than other regions, but more likely to back renewables
Despite being in broad agreement on the national stasis, coastal residents in Wales are much more likely than coastal residents in general to believe that their local area is heading in the wrong direction (54 versus 45 per cent). This aligns with a sense from coastal residents in Wales that their area is not contributing to the national picture – 47 per cent of respondents in Wales said their area contributes not much or not at all to the national economy, compared with 39 per cent of all coastal residents. They are also more likely than other coastal residents to believe that the economic benefits of work/business in their area ends up in other parts of the UK rather than staying locally, with 49 per cent saying it goes elsewhere in the UK (this is 43 per cent for all coastal respondents). In other words, they don’t think their area contributes much, but what it does contribute gets sent elsewhere.
However, Welsh respondents stand out for their support for renewables – 43 per cent say they feel ‘very positively’ about renewable energy sources, compared to 37 per cent among coastal residents more broadly. All in all, 78 per cent of Welsh coastal residents feel positively about renewables, the most of any region polled. Additionally, a majority of them say their opinion on renewables has grown more positive in the last few years (54 per cent).
