Canterbury is an English city which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour. Many historical structures remain in the city, including a city wall founded in Roman times and rebuilt in the 14th century, the ruins of St Augustine’s Abbey and a Norman castle, and perhaps the oldest school in England, The King’s School. Modern additions include the University of Kent, Canterbury Christ Church University, the Marlowe Theatre, and the St Lawrence Ground, home to Kent County Cricket Club. The city lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a local government district.
Canterbury district retains approximately 4,761 businesses, up to 60,000 full- and part-time employees and was worth £1.3 billion in 2001. This makes the district the second largest economy in Kent. Unemployment in the city has dropped significantly since 2001 owing to the opening of the Whitefriars shopping complex which introduced thousands of job opportunities. In April 2008, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, controversially demanded that salary caps should be implemented to curb the pay of the rich in an attempt to manage to growth of the economy. The city’s economy benefits mainly from significant economic projects such as the Canterbury Enterprise Hub, Lakesview International Business Park and the Whitefriars retail development. Tourism contributes £258M to the Canterbury economy and has been a “cornerstone of the local economy” for a number of years; Canterbury Cathedral alone generates over one million visitors a year.
The city has many students as it is home to three universities, together with several other higher education institutions and colleges; at the 2001 census, 22% of the population aged 16–74 were full-time students, compared with 7% throughout England. The city is host to four universities: The University of Kent, Canterbury Christ Church University, the University College for the Creative Arts and most recently GAU (The Girne American University). Near the University of Kent is the Franciscan International Study Centre, a place of study for the worldwide Franciscan Order. Chaucer College is an independent college for Japanese and other students within the campus of the University of Kent.
