This factsheet compares Gloucester with the five most similar European cities in terms of size and industrial structure. These are: Caen (France), Reims (France), Dijon (France), Le Mans (France) and Aalborg (Denmark).

Comparing cities in this way helps us to understand more about how well UK cities are competing on an international scale because it groups cities with similar industrial structures, rather than on their resulting economic performance. The factsheet also compares the relative strengths and weaknesses of Gloucester to its European counterparts on variables such as skills, employment and productivity.

City group characteristics

Gloucester is a small city with a fairly large public sector.

Population

Industrial structure

Key

• Manufacturing, mining and utilities 2011
• Business services 2011
• Public services 2011
• Other private services 2011
• Other sectors 2011

Overall economic performance

Gloucester has high employment compared to the cities in the group. However, it performs less well on other indicators including productivity, jobs and business.