Live and Work in Northern Ireland
The conventional image of Northern Ireland is distorted by its recent “troubles” and their aftermath. Today’s reality is quite different. Working life can be of very high quality and there are many out of work activities beyond the famous pub “craic”.
A personal summary follows but more information may be accessed through government websites such as Northern Ireland Tourist Board, or Invest NI's Living in Northern Ireland Pages. Also available is Belfast City Council's Belfast Investment Prospectus 2008.
You can find an independent view on WikiTravel, whose summary states:
“Northern Ireland lies on the island of Ireland, and is one of the United Kingdom's four home nations. Although having received bad publicity over the past few decades, it is nonetheless a fascinating region with much to offer in the way of beautiful scenery and cosmopolitan cities. Northern Ireland is renowned for the friendliness of its people.”
Northern Ireland was named one of the must-see destinations for 2007 by Lonely Planet.
GEOGRAPHY
In an area of less than a hundred miles square, the countryside of Ulster encompasses coastal scenery of sea loughs, cliffs and beaches, arable farm land, high moors and rocky peaks. There is Europe’s largest fresh water lake (Lough Neagh) and the extensive lake land of Lough Erne.
ECONOMY
- One of the top 5 fastest growing regional economies in the UK
- Consistent growth in the private sector over the past 3 years
- Salary costs are up to 30% lower than other similar European locations
PEOPLE
- 700,000 people live in the Belfast Metropolitan Area with the other 1 million largely within a 1 hour journey time from Belfast
- Less than 2 hour journey time to Dublin – road or rail
- 46% of the population is under 30 years old
- Labour turnover is less than 8%
- Labour cost is at least 15% lower than the UK average
SKILLS – SCHOOL LEAVERS
- Education standards in the region’s grammar and secondary schools are among the highest in the UK
- Over 70% of young people achieve A* to C grades in GCSE compare to just over 60% in England and Wales
- Almost 98% of NI students passed at “A” level compared to 96% in GB. 30% of students in NI achieved A grades relative to 22% in GB
- More than 60% of secondary school graduates go on to college
- Two first class universities; The University of Ulster and Queen’s University Belfast
SKILLS – GRADUATES
- Almost 70,000 students enrolled on higher education courses in the Regional Colleges
- Over 55,000 undergraduate students
- Over 12,000 postgraduate students
- Annually over 2,000 IT graduates qualify from NI higher education institution
- A further 2,000 qualify in Business with IT capability
- Current enrolment of students in IT related disciplines total 24,000
TELECOMS INFRASTRUCTURE
- Fully fibred backbone based on SDH technology expandable up to 100GB per second
- Connect to Europe in less than 20 millisecs and East Coast of US in around 50 millisecs
- Technology costs among the cheapest and most competitive in Europe
- More than 50 telecom service providers
PROPERTY
- Competitive rentals for city centre office accommodation with an average of around £13.50 per sq ft which compares very favourably to Glasgow at £25, Birmingham at £27, Manchester at £28, Dublin at £50 or London City at £52.
- Flexible lease terms
- Fast easy set up from acquisition, fit-out and recruitment
- Easy access to world class financial, legal, consulting and other corporate services
FACTS OF LIVING
Housing is high quality and prices are normal for UK and Ireland outside the capital conurbations.
Most department stores are well represented in City Centre and out-of-town retail malls.
Northern Ireland has some of the highest educational achievement levels in the whole of the UK.
Northern Ireland has a low rate of crime, second only to Japan for personal safety in the industrialised world.
The diversity of landscape in a tiny area supports a vast range of pastimes close to any of the major conurbations. Coarse and game fishing and sea angling is well provided for. Almost every coastal town and village has its boat club and marina to support sailing and power boats. All outdoor pursuits such as climbing, hill-walking, horse-riding, mountain-biking and canoeing are easily entertained. Some of the islands’ best diving sites are just off the coast and the beaches provide for exciting surfing.
There is a wide range of wild life, sometimes surprisingly close to town and city centres. Red squirrels, foxes and otters inhabit Belvoir Forest inside the Belfast City limit. Seals are common on the lower reaches of the Lagan, Belfast’s river. The sea loughs, (especially Strangford, some 20 minutes drive from NISP) are vital feeding grounds for European wading birds and an important colony of Brent geese over-winters on the Ards peninsula.
Much of the highest quality coast line is owned by the National Trust. This organisation also looks after and makes available to the public some important houses and gardens in Northern Ireland. Consult National Trust - Northern Ireland for more information.
There are several small airfields which support private flying; including microlights. There is an approved Land Rover 4x4 training ground. Motor sports are popular and Northern Ireland has its share of international success stories including Eddie Irvine, Paddy Hopkirk and the late Joey Dunlop.
Music and drama can be enjoyed both passively and actively in most towns but especially in and around Belfast.
INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
Northern Ireland is getting more and more connected.
Its main airports are:
George Best Belfast City Airport (airport code BHD): just five minutes from NISP and 2 miles from Belfast City Center, with magnificent views of the city of Belfast or Belfast Lough offered to passengers on approach and departure. The airport principally serves routes to domestic UK and Ireland.
Belfast International Airport (airport code BFS): some 20 minutes from NISP, further away than Belfast City Airport, but offers significantly more international destinations.
City of Derry Airport (airport code LDY) is a growing newcomer with useful services for the Science Park in that city.
There are frequent daily flights to London and other UK and Irish cities and direct flights are available to most Europe capitals and business cities. There are also some direct flights to North America (New York and Toronto all year round and seasonally to other cities).
Dublin Airport (airport code DUB) with an even wider range of destinations is 100 miles or 2 hours drive from NISP.