Cumbria as a place to live and work
A predominantly rural county, Cumbria is home to some of England's highest mountains and some of England's biggest lakes. Cumbria is a big county with big opportunities for those who chose to live and work here. The county is famous worldwide for its stunning scenery. Perhaps less well known are its bustling centres and market towns filled with shops and brimming with life, most notably the historic city of Carlisle, the coastal towns of Whitehaven, Workington and Barrow, and the market towns of Kendal and Penrith.
The scenic views are matched by the quality of life, the diversity of its communities and the friendliness of its people. As a place to live, Cumbria takes some beating. From the stunning beauty of the coast to the challenge of the Lake District to the history of Hadrian's Wall, Cumbria offers something for everyone.
Cumbria is no sleepy backwater - it demands only the best people with the right skills to meet the many challenges ahead.
Cumbria is the place to be - to live and work - and to have an excellent quality of life to spend with your family and friends and to stretch your-self professionally.
A great place to raise a family
Cumbria has some of the lowest crime rates in England and its GP practices have the country's highest levels of patient satisfaction.
Going places
There are also excellent mainline rail links, opening up access to Newcastle, Leeds, Glasgow and London.
If you're travelling by air Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow, Newcastle and Blackpool Airports are all well connected to the M6 motorway and are located less than 90 minutes' drive from the county.
A unique and inspiring place
Cumbria's schools consistently achieve above national average results in a range of areas and the percentage of children who gain access to their first preference schools are amongst the best in the country.
Linked to the rest of the country by the M6, to Scotland via the M74/75 and to Newcastle upon Tyne by the A69, connectivity to Cumbria is excellent.
The world-famous landscape, the warmth of the people and the strong sense of place, mean this unique piece of England inspires a lasting affection among residents and visitors alike. But there is more to Cumbria than meets the eye. What brings people here and keeps them coming back is, quite simply, the unbeatable quality of life.
Time and again the county comes top of the league in surveys looking at Britain's best places to live. Other research shows that Cumbrians tend to be proud of where they live and pleased that it is one of the safest, most crime free parts of Britain.
Nowhere in Britain is more beautiful or more beguiling than Cumbria and, in the modern world, nowhere offers a better opportunity to get the work-life balance right.
Cumbrians enjoy a strong of sense of community, they live in a beautiful, vibrant place and enjoy a thriving social and cultural scene that blends the county's rich history with a vibrant and forward looking attitude.
Cumbria is a modern, exciting and connected place. It is only a short journey from the cities but it is a million miles from the crowds, the traffic and the fumes.
Cumbria can be whatever you want; a haven of peace and quiet or a hive of hi-tech activity and excitement. This is only a brief glimpse of what Cumbria is all about, of what it's like to live and work here. To get a real taste of this beautiful, interesting and exciting county, you'll really have to come and experience it for yourself.
Cumbria County Council covers an area of 681,685 hectares in the North West of England, making it the second largest County in the country. The Council serves a population of 492,000 with the M6 providing the main motorway link to the area.
The most heavily concentrated areas in terms of population and industry are Carlisle, Kendal, the western coast (Maryport, Workington, Whitehaven) and Barrow-in-Furness. There are also a number of smaller towns providing shopping and service facilities. This provides a complex context for service delivery and community leadership, and unique challenges in delivering cost effective, efficient services across both rural and urban areas.
Along with agriculture, tourism is one of Cumbria's main industries with the Lake District National Park, part of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Solway Coast, North Pennines and Hadrian's Wall all being within the County, making this a unique setting to live and work in. The nuclear power industry is a huge employer in the West of the county, providing 12,000 jobs.
The region has nationally significant arts and cultural venues like the Theatre by the Lake, Keswick jazz festival and Brampton Live Roots music festival, as well as access to the beauty of the well known National Parks and the surrounding countryside.
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