West Cumbria Opportunities & Challenges 2025 38 39 Living in West Cumbria West Cumbria is a desirable place to live, offering an attractive quality of life for residents. It has beautiful natural landscapes and is home to many internationally renowned visitor attractions including the Lake District National Park and Hadrian’s Wall Frontier, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites. House prices and crime rates remain lower than national averages, and there is a sporting and cultural offer that appeals to both residents and visitors alike. But the daily life for many people in West Cumbria can be hard, with some residents unable to connect with the very assets and landscapes that make the area so attractive. Inequalities in house prices and rising rents, coupled with increasing fuel and food bills, are resulting in growing financial insecurities which in turn place strains on familial relationships and feelings of wellbeing. West Cumbria is also distant from major rail, air and motorway infrastructure making daily connections to employment, education and the natural environment difficult and time-consuming. • West Cumbria is a relatively safe place to live, work and visit. • There are a range of house prices across West Cumbria with purchase and rental costs lower than other parts of the UK. • West Cumbrians have spectacular coastlines and countryside on their doorstep with many sporting and cultural attractions to enjoy. • VCSE organisations are committed to having a positive impact on the local environment, actively protecting landscapes and species and working with business to develop energy efficiency schemes that will alleviate the difficulties caused by fuel poverty. • West Cumbrian farms have a history of quality food production and are working to keep food local, as well as offering visitor attractions including farm shops and cafes. • Both the pandemic and the costof-living crisis have contributed to growing levels of food and fuel poverty. • Many West Cumbrians – including those who are out of work and a growing demographic of those who are experiencing in-work poverty – are turning to debt to make ends meet. • There are increasing pressures on the privately owned and rented housing market, with challenges presented by those who are at risk of being homelessness and those who are indeed already homeless with multiple, complex needs. • Worryingly there are pockets of antisocial behaviour, rising drug misuse and concerning rates of domestic violence. • For those living in rural environments, access to services and employment opportunities are restricted by limited and often infrequent public transport options. • Climate change has placed some communities at greater risk of flooding and will disproportionately affect people who are least well off. OPPORTUNITIES CHALLENGES 1 https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/housingpriceslocal/E06000063/ 2 Rightmove using HM Land Registry 20th May 2025 figures, www.rightmove.co.uk 3 Prices in Keswick have risen over the past year by 12% on the previous year and 2% on the peak of £397,959 in 2022. In Cleator Moor overall prices over the past year have fallen by 14% and are 12% down on the 2022 peak of £168,255. HOUSE PRICE DIFFERENCES AND AFFORDABILITY The average house price in Cumberland was £166,000 in February 2025, up 6% from February 2024. This was lower than the rise in the Northwest (8%) over the same period.1 There remain significant differences between communities in West Cumbria in terms of house prices and housing stock. By way of example, in May 2025,2 Keswick had an overall average price of £415,956. The majority of sales in Keswick during the last year related to terrace accommodation selling for an average price of £415,773, with semi-detached properties selling for £377,698, and detached properties fetching £560,199. By contrast, properties in Cleator Moor had an overall average price of £149,997 over the last year. The majority of sales during the last year were terraced properties selling for an average price of £100,830, with semidetached properties selling for an average of £165,408, and detached properties fetching £303,000.3 Overall, in Copeland and Allerdale, property prices are broadly similar. Based on May 2025 figures,4 properties in Copeland had an average price of £176,852 over the last year. The majority of sales in Copeland during the last year were terraced properties, selling for an average price of £115,583. Semi-detached properties sold for an average of £169,114, with detached properties fetching £303,500. Properties in Allerdale had an average price of £229,361 over the last year. The majority of sales in Allerdale during the last year were terraced properties, selling for an average price of £161,024. Semi-detached properties sold for an average of £197,161, with detached properties fetching £353,123. To understand how ‘affordable’ houses are, a Housing Affordability Ratio is applied.5 In 2023, full-time employees in England could expect to spend around 7.7 times their annual earnings buying a home. This figure has returned to pre-Covid levels, after a large increase between 2021and 2022.6 House Affordability Ratios in Cumberland have remained broadly stable since 2009, presently standing at 4.4.7 HOUSING RENTAL PRICES The average monthly rental price in March 2025 for Cumberland was £614.8 This represents an increase of 8% from £568 in March 2024. This average rent is £282 lower than rents in the Northwest (£896) and £729 lower that average rents across Great Britain (£1,343). Some observers suggest that rents are growing at a year-on-year growth rate of 5.4% per year.9 If rents continue to grow at this rate, average rents in Cumberland will reach £647 by 2026. The latest figures specifically relating to Copeland and Allerdale were produced in 2021. Then, 11.0% of Copeland households and 12.2% of Allerdale households rented privately compared with 8.7% and 9.8% respectively in 2011.10 In 2021, rents in Copeland had risen by 4.2% compared to the previous year and were predicted to reach £628 by 2025. In Allerdale, rents had risen by 4% and were predicted to reach £637 by 2025. Both these figures are similar to the predicted rental rates evidenced at the Cumberland level. Since 2019, there have been slight changes in household make-up with more people living alone or in single parent households. According to the Office for National Statistics11 in 2021, compared to 2011, there have been rises in both Copeland and Allerdale of: • One person households (aged 66 and over) from 13.2% to 14.9% in Copeland and 14.6% to 15.7% in Allerdale. • “Other” one person households from 17.3% to 19.4% in Copeland and 16.5% to 17.7% in Allerdale. • Single family households with lone parents from 9.4% to 10.2% in Copeland from 9.3% to 9.7% in Allerdale. The costs of either renting or owning a home, although cheaper than in other parts of England, still represent only one bill that has to be paid every month by households across West Cumbria. Fuel and food costs must also be met, and such costs have risen considerably during the recent cost-of-living crisis. Increasing financial pressures on household budgets have meant that many more families, across a wider spectrum of demographics, are falling into fuel and food poverty, often turning to debt and even gambling to try and make ends meet. And although high increases in bills month on month are starting to ease along with falling inflation, debts, anxieties and relationship pressures remain. 4 Rightmove using HM Land Registry 20th May 2025 figures, www.rightmove.co.uk 5 To create a ratio, estimates are produced that divide house prices by annual earnings. These ratios can then be used to compare affordability over time and between areas, with a larger number reflecting a less affordable area. 6 Housing Affordability in England and Wales in 2024: Office for National Statistics, March 2025.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTI5NzM=