Locations

Town Hall, Dalton Square, Lancaster, LA1 1PJ

Town Hall, Marine Road, East Morecambe, LA4 5AF

Lancaster District is the most northerly district in Lancashire. Around 70% of the district’s population of 140,000 people live in the main urban area of Lancaster, Morecambe and Heysham. The remainder reside in an extensive rural area, which includes the market town of Carnforth and parts of the Arnside/Silverdale and Forest of Bowland areas of outstanding natural beauty. The district’s location on Morecambe Bay means it has strong cultural and economic links with communities in south Cumbria.

The district is located on the main north/south transport corridor with good accessibility by road and rail to most of the country via the M6 motorway and the West Coast main railway line. Completion in 2016 of a new road link from the M6 to the Heysham peninsula will radically improve accessibility to Morecambe and key employment sites in Heysham, whilst providing traffic relief to Lancaster and Carnforth. East/west rail and road links are not as good, with connections east into Yorkshire and west into South Cumbria in need of improvement.

As home to the top ten ranked Lancaster University and the main campus of the University of Cumbria, the district has a strong academic focus and capitalising on this strength is a key economic priority.

Other key economic assets include Heysham 1 and 2 nuclear power stations, the expanding port of Heysham, the visitor economy, and arts and culture. The visitor economy is focused on the City of Lancaster’s cultural assets and Morecambe Bay’s outstanding natural environment and traditional seaside destination. The district is viewed as being of regional importance in economic terms, particularly in terms of innovation and growth, and this is reflected in the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership’s Strategic Economic Plan.

The district is also one of eight locations identified for the potential construction of new nuclear power stations before 2025 although currently, Heysham 1 is estimated to be decommissioned in 2019 with Heysham 2 following in 2023. The district plays a significant role in supporting other nationally important infrastructure projects.

Key documents

Lancaster visitor map (486 KB)

Morecambe and Heysham visitor map (404 KB)