Norwich, United Kingdom

Norwich is 100 miles (160 km) north-east of London, 40 miles (64 km) north of Ipswich and 65 miles (105 km) east of Peterborough. The city lies at almost the same latitude as Leicester and Shrewsbury.

Norwich, like the rest of the British Isles, has a temperate maritime climate. It does not suffer extreme temperatures, and benefits from rainfall fairly evenly spread throughout the year. Coltishall, about 11 mi (18 km) to the north-east, was the nearest official met-office weather station for which records are available, although it ceased reporting in early 2006 – Norwich airport now provides readings. Norwich's position in East Anglia, jutting out into the North Sea can produce weather conditions that have less effect on other parts of the country, such as snow or sleet showers during the winter months on a northerly or easterly wind, or sea fog/haar during the summer half of the year. An example of Norwich being afflicted by sea fog is shown in the adjacent image.

The highest temperature recorded at Coltishall was 33.1 °C (91.6 °F) during June 1976. However, going back further to 1932, and Norwich's absolute record high reached 35.6 °C (96.1 °F), while 37.0 °C was reached in July 2022 at Norwich Weather Centre. Typically the warmest day of the year should reach 28.8 °C (83.8 °F) and 9.9 days should register a temperature of 25.1 °C (77.2 °F) or higher.

Norwich's economy was historically manufacturing-based, including a large shoemaking industry, but it transitioned in the 1980s and 1990s into a service-based economy.

The greater-Norwich economy (including Norwich, Broadland and South Norfolk government districts) as measured by GVA was estimated at £7.4 billion in 2011 (2011 GVA at 2006 prices). The city's largest employment sectors are business and financial services (31%), public services (26%), retail (12%), manufacturing (8%) and tourism (7%).

The proportion of working-age adults in Norwich claiming unemployment benefits was 3.3% compared with 3.6% across the UK.

New developments on the former Boulton and Paul site include a Riverside entertainment complex with nightclubs and other venues featuring national leisure brands. Nearby, the football stadium is being upgraded with more residential property development alongside the River Wensum.

Archant, formerly Eastern Counties Newspapers (ECN), is a national publishing group that has grown out of the city's local newspapers and is headquartered in Norwich.

Historically Norwich has been associated with art, literature and publishing. This continues. It was the site of England's first provincial library, which opened in 1608, and the first city to implement the Public Libraries Act 1850. The Norwich Post was the first provincial newspaper outside London, founded in 1701. The Norwich School of artists was the first provincial art movement, with nationally acclaimed artists such as John Crome associated with the movement. Other literary firsts include Julian of Norwich's Revelations of Divine Love, published in 1395, which was the first book written in the English language by a woman, and the first poem written in blank verse, composed by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, in the 16th century.

Today the city is a regional centre for publishing, with 5 per cent of the UK's independent publishing sector based in the city in 2012. In 2006 Norwich became the UK's first City of Refuge, part of the International Cities of Refuge Network (ICORN) which promotes free speech. Norwich made the shortlist for the first city to be designated UK City of Culture, but in July 2010 it was announced that Derry had been selected. In May 2012 Norwich was designated as England's first UNESCO City of Literature.

The city has 56 primary schools (including 16 academies and free schools) and 13 secondary schools, 11 of which are academies. The city's eight independent schools include Norwich School and Norwich High School for Girls. There are five schools for children with learning disabilities. The former Norwich High School for Boys in Upper St Giles Street has a blue plaque commemorating Sir John Mills, who was a pupil there.

Norwich has two universities: the University of East Anglia and Norwich University of the Arts. The student population is around 15,000, many of them from overseas. The University of East Anglia, founded in 1963, is located on the outskirts of the city. It has a creative writing programme, established by Malcolm Bradbury and Angus Wilson, whose graduates include Kazuo Ishiguro and Ian McEwan. It has done work on climate research and climate change. Its campus is home to the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, which houses several important art collections. The Norwich University of the Arts dates back to 1845 as the Norwich School of Design. Founded by artists and followers of the Norwich School art movement, it was founded to provide designers for local industries. Previously a specialist art school (the Norwich School of Art and Design), it achieved university status in 2013.