Cumbria Community Foundation - Furness: Opportunities and Challenges 2021

F U R N E S S – O P P O R T U N I T I E S & C H A L L E N G E S 6 Furness in Profile Furness is a distinct entity separated from the rest of the UK by mountains and water. Some 250 square miles in size, with 90,521 inhabitants, its borders are defined by the Lake District fells, England’s largest lake, Windermere, the tidal estuaries of the Duddon and the Leven, Morecambe Bay and the Irish Sea. These natural barriers isolate the area. They also reinforce a sense of identity and community. The people of Furness are resilient, cheerful in the face of adversity, determined and generous. In this report, we refer to ‘Low Furness’ and ‘High Furness’. Low Furness is the Furness Peninsula, plus Walney Island, while High Furness is a more rural area of farms, hills, forests and lakes to the north. All of Furness was in Lancashire prior to 1974 but is now part of Cumbria. In local government terms, it is made up of Barrow Borough and part of South Lakeland District.