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Gross value added

Gross value added (GVA) measures the increase in the value generated from the production of goods and services. GVA can be calculated by estimating the value of goods and services produced minus the value of the inputs used to create them (production) or the profits from business, household income and the government tax intake from the production of goods and services (income). The annual balanced GVA figures combine information from both measures to provide the best estimate of GVA.

The GVA figures are at current market prices, meaning that they are not adjusted for inflation. The real terms change in GVA figures reflect the annual change in GVA, adjusted to remove the effects of inflation. Some caution should be used when interpreting GVA per head figures and figures for smaller geographies. Further information is provided at the bottom of this page.

An associated economic measure, gross domestic product (GDP), combines the estimate of GVA with taxes (including value added tax) and subsidies on the produced goods and services.

The latest annual balanced GVA figures are for 2024 and are provisional.

Key figures

  • Total GVA was £36.56bn in Lancashire-12.

  • Total GVA was £44.33bn in Lancashire-14.

  • Compared to 2023, there was a real terms increase in total GVA of 1.4% in Lancashire-12 (England = 1.3%). In Lancashire-14, there was a 1.7% real terms increase in total GVA.

  • GVA per head was £28,236 in Lancashire-12 and £27,677 in Lancashire-14 (England = £38,095).

  • Compared to 2023, there was a real terms decrease in GVA per head of 0.1% in Lancashire-12 (England = 0.3% increase). In Lancashire-14, there was a real terms increase in GVA per head of 0.2%.

Source: Annual balanced estimates of gross value added (GVA(B)) for local authority districts (LAD) and international territorial levels (ITL) from the Office for National Statistics.

GVA by local authority district (LAD)

At the local authority level, Preston had the largest total GVA (£5.95bn), followed by South Ribble (£4.55bn), Blackburn with Darwen (£4.36bn), Lancaster (£4.00bn) and West Lancashire (£3.75bn). Rossendale (£1.36bn) and Hyndburn (£1.77bn) had the lowest total GVA.

Eleven local authorities in Lancashire-14 saw a real terms increase in total GVA compared to the previous year. The largest increases were seen in Pendle (7.0%), Ribble Valley (5.0%), Preston (4.1%) and Rossendale (3.5%). Three local authorities saw a real terms decrease in total GVA, with the largest decreases in Fylde (7.3%) and Wyre (3.2%).

GVA by international territory level (ITL)

At international territory level 3 (ITL3) within Lancashire-14, Mid Lancashire had the largest total GVA (£16.17bn), followed by East Lancashire (£7.69bn), and Chorley and West Lancashire (£6.67bn). Blackpool (£3.41bn) had the lowest total GVA.

Compared to the previous year, five of the six ITL3 areas in Lancashire-14 saw a real terms increase in total GVA. The largest increase was seen in Blackburn with Darwen (3.4%), followed by East Lancashire (2.9%). In contrast, Lancaster and Wyre saw a 0.2% real terms decrease in total GVA.

At international territory level 2 (ITL2) within the North West, the largest total GVA was seen in Greater Manchester (£104.15bn), followed by Merseyside (£45.95bn). Lancashire-14 (£44.33bn) had the fourth highest total GVA in the North West.

Of the five ITL2 areas within the North West, Lancashire-14 had the third highest real terms growth in total GVA (1.7%). The largest real terms increases were seen in Merseyside (2.0%) and Greater Manchester (1.8%).

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes annual balanced estimates of GVA for subnational areas of the United Kingdom, including estimates for the Lancashire-14 International Territorial Level (ITL) 2 sub-region, the six smaller Lancashire ITL3 areas and the 14 Lancashire local authority areas. Further information on Lancashire's geographies can be found on the geography article.

The GVA figures are workplace-based, meaning that they are allocated to the region in which the economic activity takes place (see limitations regarding GVA per head figures).

The UK total GVA figure includes extra-regio (activity that cannot be assigned to a specific country or region). All GVA per head figures exclude extra-regio activity as it cannot be assigned to regions.

The balanced estimates of GVA combine two approaches to measuring GVA. Income GVA estimates are calculated by adding up the income generated by individuals or corporations in the production of goods and services whilst the production approach estimates GVA by calculating the total output of goods and services less the value of goods and services used up in the production process. A balanced approach evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of these two opposing approaches and gives them an appropriate weighting in informing a single best estimate of GVA.

The real terms change in GVA figures, or chained volume measures (CVM) of GVA, are calculated using chain-linking methods to remove the impact of inflation.

Limitations

The GVA per head figures can be a useful way of comparing areas of different sizes. However, because GVA figures are workplace-based, comparisons can be affected by commuting flows. For example, the 2021 Census showed that Preston gained a net inflow of 9,053 commuters, whilst Chorley saw a net outflow of 6,454 commuters (further details can be found on the commuter flows article). Therefore, GVA per head figures should be interpreted with caution. The GVA labour productivity figures provide a direct measure of economic performance.

At the local authority level and smaller ITL3 areas, some GVA figures can be volatile owing to the small nature of the areas. Where erratic movements are evident in the time series you should use caution interpreting the data.

Page updated 25 September 2026