The HB Regional Economic Development Agency (REDA) has a new website up and running, where you can find our region’s economy examined in detail … heaps of facts, figures and analysis.

But what grabs us most is a feature called Hawke’s Bay Community Compass.

It gives detailed information about a community’s demographics, socio-economic wellbeing, health, housing, accessibility to services, education, employment, economic, and environmental measures. Information is provided at territorial local authority (TLA) and suburb level.

So there’s a Quarterly Report each for CHB, Hastings District, Napier City and Wairoa. The data provided therein covers everything, including trend info, from the essentials like new business registrations and educational achievement, to crime and deprivation rates, to BayBuzz’s quirky favourite – monthly gambling spend per capita through electronic gaming machines.

Want to know?

Napier City – $116, Wairoa – $82, Hastings District – $80, and CHB a frugal $42.

Seriously, whatever your regional data need, REDA’s Community Compass should be one of your first stops. With plenty of deeper dive economic data in their regional Infometrics reports.