Letterkenny now the third largest labour catchment in the Western Region

The Letterkenny town labour catchment is now the third largest labour catchment in the Western Region, according to a new report by the Western Development Commission (WDC).

Up one position from fourth in 2016, there is now over 23,500 workers living in the Letterkenny town labour catchment.

This is approximately 2.4 times the number of workers living in the town itself. This highlights the greater labour supply available beyond the immediate town boundary. The town labour catchment is that area from which a town draws most of its’ workforce. Therefore it is a very useful measure of labour supply.

The Letterkenny town labour catchment covers a large area but is completely confined to within County Donegal.

Deirdre Frost, Policy Analyst at the WDC noted: “This is significant in the context of the revision of the National Planning Framework, where urban centres such as Letterkenny will be expected to grow in importance.”

While the Letterkenny labour catchment extends to large parts of the county, it excludes southeast areas of Donegal, which form part of the Ballybofey/Stranorlar labour catchment.

Northern Donegal includes the smaller labour catchments of Buncrana, Carndonagh, and Moville – a new labour catchment and the Derry labour catchments. In west Donegal there are the catchments of Bunbeg/Derrybeg, Dungloe and Killybegs.

 Of those living in the Letterkenny town labour catchment, 46.6% (10,942) are employed within Letterkenny town and 53.4% (12,500) are employed outside the town in centres ranging from close by such as Lifford (2.4%) to centres further away such as Dublin city (1.1%).

Key employment destinations outside the town are Donegal Rural (21%), Northern Ireland (5.6%) and Ballybofey/Stranorlar (2.8%).

The impact of greater numbers working from home may explain the increased popularity of more distant workplaces, for example the numbers citing Dublin as their work location have increased from 198 in 2016 to 257 in 2022.  There is also an increase in the number of those living in the Letterkenny labour catchment and reporting their workplace somewhere in Northern Ireland, up from 957 in 2016 to 1,314 in 2022.

The age profile of those living in the Letterkenny town labour catchment is the second youngest of the catchments after the Galway city labour catchment, with 16.4% aged under 30 years. The average for workers in the State is 17.6%. Those at work and living in the Letterkenny town labour catchment have increased their rates of third level education, with 57.2%, up from 51.5% in 2016.

Within the Letterkenny town labour catchment the single largest employer is the ‘Education, Human Health and Social Work’ sector and accounts for 29.9% which is much higher than the State average (23.8%). Both the ‘Wholesale, Retail and Commerce’ (23.6%) and ‘ICT and Professional Services’ (17.6%) are important employment sectors. ‘Manufacturing Industries’ (8.7%) is the fourth most important sector, lower than the State average of 13.4%.

Commenting on the findings, the CEO of the WDC, Allan Mulrooney said: “This is very valuable information as it provides robust analysis of travel to work patterns across the North West and in centres such as Letterkenny. 

“It provides detailed data which will inform decisions on commuting and employment patterns and enterprise location. Comparing these data with the original WDC analysis in the intercensal periods, 2016 and 2006, provides insights into trends. It will be of particular value to policy-makers in the context of the revision of the National Planning Framework and the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies and County Development.”

The Western Development Commission is a statutory body that was established in 1997 to promote social and economic development in the Western Region - the counties of Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, Mayo, Roscommon, Galway and Clare.