How Cumberland Council uses The Data City to support investment, strategy and regional insights

Cumberland Council is one of two new unitary authorities in Cumbria. The council’s economic intelligence function plays a crucial role in supporting local growth, investment readiness and regional strategy. 

Ginny Murphy is the Economy and Labour Market Analyst at Cumberland Council. She provides monthly updates on local labour market and economic trends, answers data-related queries across the council, and contributes to shaping Cumberland’s emerging economic strategy 

The Data City’s Real-Time Industrial Classifications (RTICs), have become a central part of this work. By moving away from outdated SIC codes, Ginny can find and classify businesses in a way that more accurately reflects their real-world activities. 

Cumberland’s insight capability is small but in high demand. From regular reporting to last-minute investment enquiries. 

Like many rural and regional economies, Cumbria is often misrepresented in traditional datasets. These limitations made it difficult to get a clear picture of the region’s industrial strengths and capabilities.  

Many companies operate from Cumbria but are registered elsewhere, or lack standard websites, meaning they often go unlisted in traditional datasets. For a region trying to attract investment and build a robust economic strategy, this creates real challenges. 

 The team needed a solution that could reflect real business activity, support fast data requests and help paint a more accurate picture of the region’s economy. 

Cumberland Council uses The Data City’s platform through a joint licence with Westmorland and Furness.  

While their neighbouring authority is focused on dashboarding and self-service data lakes, Cumberland takes a more traditional approach, using the platform to support economic analysis and internal data requests.  

The Data City’s Real-Time Industrial Classifications (RTICs) are the standout feature for Ginny, enabling her to find businesses based on actual activity and language – rather than SIC codes that often don’t reflect what modern businesses do. 

Despite limited capacity, the council is using The Data City to support an increasing number of requests. 

Cumberland Council has been able to make meaningful use of The Data City’s platform.  

The tool is used regularly to respond to investment enquiries, often in cases where traditional data sources fall short. It also supports internal intelligence and labour market reporting, helping the council meet the growing demand for timely, relevant data. 

Ginny encourages new users to get hands-on with the platform and invest time upfront in learning how to use the platform. When used confidently and intentionally, it has the power to transform how organisations understand their economies and uncover new opportunities. 

To find out how The Data City could support your council or region, get in touch with our team.