About Us
The Regional Intelligence Unit (RIU), provided by the NWDA Research Team, is the Regional Observatory for the Northwest. The team collect, analyse and disseminate key regional information in order to present an accurate and continuously updated picture of the socio-economic and environmental structure of Northwest England.
Principal activities focus on:-
- Collation of published data and research from a wide range of sources
- Strategic research
- Dissemination of information via the RIU Extranet
- The Regional Economic Forecasting Panel which provides economic forecasting by a panel of experts based on their analysis of supplied economic data. Reports are published quarterly and are available to businesses and the public sector.
The RIU also has a wide range of tools and in-house expertise. They include:-
- Official Census Repository (1991 and 2001)
- Database of 207,000 Northwest companies
- Economic, strategic and statistical analysis
- Research, data mining, web development and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) capabilities
- Digital aerial photography covering the entire Northwest
Further information on the activities of each are of the Regional Intelligence Unit can be accessed via the links on the left hand side.
The RIU prospectus is available to download here