Profile of the Friars and South Lynn
The Electoral Wards that border Hardings Pits and the Waterfront Regeneration area are not rich. The following table details some key indicators (data from DAWN, Data about West Norfolk).
| Ward | NEET figures number (2006) | Deprivation - non-decent housing Score (2007) | Average Age | Income - total weekly | Unemployment rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Margaret & St Nicholas | 21 | 0.4 | 46.04 | 400 | 7.7 |
| South & West Lynn | 29 | 0.3 | 36.85 | 490 | 5.8 |
| W Norfolk & Kings Lynn Average | 8.55 | 0.32 | 43.14 | 550 | 2.92 |
| National Average | 8.55 | 0.29 | 39.68 | 552.38 | 2.99 |
On most indicators, these two wards are close to the most deprived in West Norfolk and well below average for England. Nationally on the Index of Multiple Deprivation, St Margarets with St Nicholas ranks 534th, South and West Lynn 1154th. South and West Lynn is far from homogeneous: of its three constituent super output areas:
| Rank. | Lower Level Super Output Area | Deprivation score | Nat. Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | King's Lynn and West Norfolk 011D | 51.03 | 2111 |
| 2 | King's Lynn and West Norfolk 011E | 19.95 | 13942 |
| 3 | King's Lynn and West Norfolk 011F | 19.81 | 14041 |
(Area 11D is the southern part of the Ward lying east of the river Great Ouse: the most rural part of the ward.)
West Norfolk Partnership's Ward Profiles (http://dawn.localknowledge.co.uk) show South and West Lynn as predominantly white, younger than average for the area, low in qualifications and skills, and rather poor. By contrast, St Margarets and St Nicholas' residents appear more average for West Norfolk: compared to South and West Lynn, they are (on average) a bit older, a bit better qualified, a bit more diverse, a bit more unemployed: just as poor.
This, then, is the niche into which the council wants to insert their waterfront regeneration project: a wedge between two really quite deprived areas and the splendidly muddy Great Ouse. It's going to be a tough sell. You don't need to be much of a student of human nature to notice that the rich like to herd together, so how keen will people with the resources to invest in a marina-side flat be to live cheek by jowl with us riff-raff? The NORA 'Yours Kings Lynn' development showed by experiment how keen folk weren't to live in South Lynn. If the waterfront regeneration project goes ahead we may see how keen they aren't to live next door to Hillington Square!