Profile of the City of Exeter
The site of Exeter has been inhabited for over 2000 years and in Roman times the City was the administrative centre of Devon and Cornwall. Soon after 1200 it became one of the first three cities in England to proclaim a mayor while the long line of Bishops of Exeter goes back to 1050. It is now one of the major historic cities in the country, a true regional centre in cultural and commercial terms and located at the hub of transport links into and out of the South West. Its airport has a rapidly growing range of scheduled and chartered services.
The City is a compact urban area of 4,719 hectares with a resident population of 120,000. It is well served by road, rail and air links, being 3 hours from London and 75 minutes from Bristol by road, and just over two hours and one hour by rail respectively. It is the principal urban area in the primarily rural areas of East and Mid Devon and Teignbridge, being 40 miles from Plymouth to the west and 80 miles from Bristol to the north and Bournemouth to the east. Thus, it provides a regional centre for a large area and provides the amenities and services normally found in much larger cities.
Exeter has a free-standing economy with a substantial sphere of influence. The City functions as the service centre for much of Devon and Cornwall in terms of regional administration and business services and has a retail catchment population of over 480,000. Its position as the Regional Capital led the Met Office to relocate its national headquarters to a new building in Exeter in 2003 and Electricity de France (EDF) to re-locate some of its headquarters functions to a new building in 2003. Major services located in Exeter include the Crown and County Courts, the Devon and Cornwall Police Headquarters, the Regional Health Authority, South West Regional Development Agency, Devon County Council, regional offices of the NFU, DEFRA, Insolvency Agency, ADAS, South West Water, the Environment Agency, South West Tourism, Arts Council South West and two major insurance companies.
The City is also an important educational centre with the University of Exeter (approx 13,000 students) and Exeter College (approx 12,000 students) together with specialist educational establishments such as the West of England School for Children with Little or No Sight, St Loyes College for Training Disabled People for Employment and the Royal School for the Deaf. The schooling system was re-organised in September 2005, replacing a three tier, 11-16 system with a two tier system. All five secondary schools and a number of primary schools have recently been re-built. Exeter College provides sixth form and further education and there are a number of private schools in the City.
There are several modern business parks and major industrial and trading estates and, while Exeter is not a major manufacturing centre, there are some significant companies within the City including Howmet and Stovax.
The City is the major shopping and cultural centre in the area, with two theatres, the Phoenix Arts Centre, a number of galleries, a major regional museum and a number of very successful Festivals and events throughout the year run by the City Council. A retail and housing re-development of a major part of the City Centre was recently completed and provides an exciting, contemporary designed heart to the City Centre. As a centre within the West Country, Exeter has a thriving and expanding tourist industry and good access to outstanding countrywide and open-air activities, including the Exe Estuary and the sea, Dartmoor and Exmoor. The area has many fine historic buildings and landmarks, including Exeter Cathedral, one of the finest in the country.
The City has numerous leisure facilities including a network of indoor and outdoor leisure centres. The Exeter Arena is an international standard 400m athletics arena and soccer, rugby, hockey and speedway teams are within the City, with horse racing nearby at two courses. Sailing and canoeing and a number of golf courses and facilities are within easy reach.
The City has an excellent quality of life and is a pleasant and safe place to live and work.