Issues and SWOT

strength

Build on the Youth Zone partnership

Partners have secured the capital target and construction has begun.

The new building can become a local route into activities and support.

Evidence

strength

Make room for homes people can afford

Average private rent is £1,380 a month (August 2026) in Thurrock council area. This is £79 lower than the England average for the same month. Homes rented privately ranged from 6.5% in Stifford to 34.8% in Grays Riverside — a gap of 28.3 percentage points.

Housing costs matter most alongside earnings and the number of affordable homes available. A local average cannot tell us whether a particular household can afford its home.

strength

Bring support closer to people in poor health

4.3% of people reported bad or very bad health in Thurrock council area (21 March 2021). Across England, the figure was 5.2%. People reporting bad or very bad health ranged from 1.5% in Chafford Hundred West to 6.2% in Chadwell St Mary — a gap of 4.8 percentage points.

This is how residents described their health in the census. It can reveal differences between neighbourhoods, but does not diagnose illness or measure current waiting times. Age profiles differ between places, so these shares do not measure service quality.

weakness

Address the everyday places residents want improved

The approved programme identifies playgrounds, parks and high streets for investment.

Visible local needs require completed repairs and maintenance.

Evidence

opportunity

Connect Grays to its riverfront

Planning permission allows a new riverside route and defence improvements.

A connected route could make the waterfront easier to use.

Evidence

opportunity

Plan homes and care around an older population

13.6% of people in Thurrock council area were aged 65 or over (21 March 2021). People aged 65 or over ranged from 4.5% in Chafford Hundred West to 22.1% in Corringham & Fobbing — a gap of 17.5 percentage points.

Age alone does not mean poor health or a need for care. Accessible homes, reliable transport and support close to home matter as people get older.

opportunity

Connect local skills to local opportunities

26.2% of people aged 16 or over had a degree or equivalent (21 March 2021) in Thurrock council area. Across England, the figure was 33.9%. People aged 16+ with no qualifications ranged from 10.8% in Chafford Hundred West to 29.3% in Tilbury St Chads — a gap of 18.5 percentage points.

Qualifications show one part of the skills available locally. They do not show whether people have secure jobs or work that uses those skills.

opportunity

Target safety work where problems repeat

Mapped police records are available for neighbourhoods in Thurrock council area.

Published locations are approximate and some crimes are not mapped. Counts show recorded incidents, not the chance of an individual becoming a victim.

opportunity

Turn published plans into visible progress

3 named local projects or plans have official evidence in this collection.

A published plan makes responsibilities and intentions easier to inspect. It does not prove that funding is secured or that promised benefits have arrived.

opportunity

Target support where disadvantages overlap

Households facing two or more measured disadvantages ranged from 8% in Chafford Hundred West to 28.5% in Tilbury St Chads — a gap of 20.6 percentage points.

These households met at least two census conditions covering education, employment, health and housing. This is not an income or poverty measure.

threat

Help households cope with sudden income shocks

The council offers assessed crisis and housing-cost support.

Unexpected costs can quickly destabilise a household budget.

Evidence