Alterations and extensions to provide separate bedroom facilities to all flats and the provision of new car parking

Sheltered Housing policy, Castletown Local Plan 1991

land surrounding the complex should be considered suitable for additional development which is deemed necessary

orking age population, the majority being in full time positions (around two thirds). The main employment sectors are Education, Health & Medical Services (14.7%), followed by Insurance & Banking (11.3%) and the Wholesale & Retail Distribution (10.4%), although the Insurance & Banking sector has declined by 1.9% since Census in 2006. Other key employment sectors are Transport & Communications (7%), Construction (7.8%) and Public Administration (7.1%). The biggest growth since the previous census in 2006 in employment sectors is within Business Services and ICT (+1.3% to 5.7%). Households with access to a car on the Island has been steadily rising, a 15% increase is noted since 2001, to 86%. Douglas has the lowest accessibility however at 80.1%. Economic The Island has healthy reserves and has had a stable and diverse economy. The Isle of Man has a simple tax regime with no Capital Gains Tax, Withholding Taxes or Wealth Taxes, which makes it an attractive location for businesses and investors to locate. The recent launch of the 2020 Vision provides an overview of the Island's current positioning and a forecast of growth for the future. The Island has enjoyed unbroken growth for the past 30 years and was rated 8th in the world in 2012 by the World Bank in terms of the national income per person. The Island has had continued success; however there are changes on the Island as the economic sector evolves. The sector's for which the island is perhaps most well known for, such as Banking and Professional Services are expected to continue to decline in terms of the number of job opportunities, but still with a growing GDP. Established sectors on the Island - such as Manufacturing, are forecast to grow (with specific focus on high-tech areas), adding significant GDP and job numbers (715) to the economy. Finally the economic change that is currently underway is highlighted through the egaming and ICT sectors, the e- business sector is forecast to be providing 90% of the growth in GDP for these emerging sectors, and ICT expected to deliver two thirds of the jobs in these sectors. A key source of growth for the Island over the past decade has been the emergence of small and medium sized enterprises. These are forecast for continued growth. Other economic successes have been the ship registry; during 2013 the Island's register secured more ships from new owners with a corresponding increase in gross registered tonnage of more than twice the growth rate of the world's fleet. The Isle of Man has now moved into 14th place in the table of world registers by tonnage, which places it ahead of Germany for the first time, in 2010 the Island did not feature within the World's top twenty registers so has demonstrated considerable success. The commercial yacht register also continues to perform very well with over 100 of the world's most prestigious yachts registered to the Island. The maritime sector has become very important to the Isle of Man and now employs around 600 people 3. The Island has also shown commitment and growth in specialist sectors such as Space, offering zero corporate tax and incentives to businesses. One of the 3 http://www.gov.im/news/2014/jan/07/2013-proves-a-success-for-the-isle-of-man-ship-registry/ Central Douglas Masterplan World's top 10 Satellite companies now has a presence on the Island, and it is also home to the International Institute of Space Commerce. Other high performing sectors include Bio-tech and Clean-tech, Film and Food Production. This evolving economic sector emphasises the need for the Island to remain and increase its attractiveness as a place to live as well as invest. Tourism is a less direct employer (Tourist accommodation making up 1.6% of employment, rising 0.7% since 2006) however it is an important sector attracting 290,754 visitors in 2013 4. The number of visitors has fluctuated over the past 10 years considerably, peaking in 2004 at 340,902, declining to 275,203 in 20085. Douglas Town Centre - Retailing A 'health check' was undertaken for Douglas as part of the Retail Strategy evidence base in 2013. Of note is that the town has largest number of UK national multiple retailers on the Island, along with independent traders. The principal retail area is located on Strand Street, Castle Street and Duke Street. The main convenience retailers within this area are the Iceland on Chester Street and M&S Food on Drumgold Street. Tesco is on Lake Road, the largest superstore on the Island and also within the Central Douglas Masterplan area. The main comparison retailers are also located in this area, within Strand Street and Strand Shopping Centre, within the centre major retailers include M&S, Boots, Topshop, Monsoon, HMV, TK Maxx, River Island and Next. In October 2012 there were 35 vacant units, whilst a number of these were on 4 Passenger Survey Annual Report 2013, Isle of Man Government 5 Passenger Survey Annual Report 2013, Isle of Man Government S