Equality Scheme: 2025-2029

As part of the previous central governments 'Levelling Up Programme', Torridge was identified as one of the bottom 20 performers in four categories:

Education/Skills = only 26.2% of residents have a Level 4 or above qualification, this is significantly lower than the English average of 33.9%.

Earnings/Pay = median annual full-time gross earnings (by place of work) in Torridge is £27,212 compared to the English average of £33,197.

Productivity = Gross Value Added per filled job (£) is £34,070 in Torridge, in stark contrast to the English average of £52,286.

This meant that Torridge was invited to form a Levelling Up Partnership with the government, giving us access to a pot of £20m in funding to projects which would help boost Torridge's performance in these areas.

Additional Challenges:

Ranked 357th out of 379 Local Authority areas in terms of economic competitiveness.
41% of jobs pay under the Living Wage, and we have the 2nd lowest adult social mobility rate in England.

Travel is a key issue for residents, as they are highly reliant on private transport especially as 40% of residents commute out of the district for work. Public transport is limited, with no train lines present in the district. The average travel time to 8 key services by public transport is 36 minutes.
Brain-drain due to limited education or skill development opportunities.

As a result of the significant barriers that residents of Torridge face due to the economic difficulties described above and challenges presenting such a rural area, the Council has decided that on top of the legally defined protected characteristics (set out in the 2010 Equality Act) we will consider implications for those suffering from socio-economic disadvantage.