Ambitious and Energetic

Reading's economy is made up of diverse business sectors including ICT, finance, distribution  and pharmaceuticals.  Partly due to this mix of knowledge intensive industries, more than  55% of our workforce is qualified to degree standard or above.  Unsurprisingly, our universities also have one of the highest ratios of graduate employment in the UK, with many post graduates typically choosing to stay and work in the area.

This helps contribute to the fact that over 29% of employment is in knowledge economy sectors (against a UK average of 17%). 

Our residents are as diverse as our industry base, coming from many ethnic backgrounds.  The University of Reading has one of the largest intakes of overseas students of any college in the UK, adding to the cultural mix of the town, which has a remarkably cosmopolitan feel to it.   

Employee jobs by industry

                                                               Reading     Rdg%    SE%      UK%
Manufacturing                                         4,100        4.4         8.8         10.9
Construction                                           2,700        2.9        4.5            4.8
Services                                                85,200       91.4      85.2         82.9
Distribution, hotels & restaurants        22, 400       24.0      24.6         23.5
Transport & communications                  8,100         8.7         6.0           5.9
Finance, IT, other business activities    27,500      29.5        24.1         21.2
Public admin, education & health          22,700       24.4        25.4        26.9
Other services                                         4,500       4.8          5.2          5.3
Tourism-related                                       6,700       7.2         7.9           8.3