It is actually in North East Lincolnshire, but we’ll allow outsiders to say we’re from Lincolnshire.

Although we were South Humberside until the mid-1990s, most Grimbarians get a little touchy about that one, so maybe avoid mentioning Humberside. However, Grimsby has never been part of Yorkshire. It has also never been in East Yorkshire as one BBC report once claimed, to an immense uproar from locals.

One thing I do want to say on this topic – I do kinda understand the confusion with this Myth (even if it is annoying), because we are literally just across the River Humber from Hull, which is – of course – part of Yorkshire, and Grimsby’s history does have incredibly close ties with the City of Hull. Also, when Grimsby was in South Humberside, the northern side of the Humber was known as North Humberside, which – again – makes sense to assume they would still be part of the same county.

We’ve all seen or at least heard of the TV shows that like to portray Grimbarians as benefit scroungers, but did you know that – surprise surprise – what the media likes to portray about our area is not actually factual. Shock horror, right?

To fully explain, let us break down the information provided by the Office of National Statistics (ONS). According to the ONS, in 2021 there were a total of 157,200 people living in North East Lincolnshire. Of all those 157k people, only 4,070 are claiming out-of-work benefits, which is a mere 4.3% of the population of North East Lincolnshire.

In comparison: HULL: 5.9% are claiming out-of-work benefits

MANCHESTER: 5.7%

LEEDS: 4.3%

LINCOLN: 4.3%

LONDON is also at 4.3% of the total population

BIRMINGHAM: 8.4%

MILTON KEYNES: 3.8%

COVENTRY: 4.7%

So, as you can see, the number of claimants is actually pretty typical of statistics across the country.

It’s also worth noting that just because people are claiming benefits, does not mean that they are unemployed. Benefits also cover the equivalent of:

💛 Child Tax Credits

💛 Working Tax Credits

💛 Disability

💛 Sickness

💛 Carers

💛 Pension Credits

This myth comes from a variety of media sources, most prominently implied in Sacha Baron Cohen’s film Grimsby (the less said about that, the better!) However, statistics from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show that we’re actually not a bunch of uneducated idiots at all.

💛 79.3% of adults in North East Lincolnshire have the equivalent of at least 4 GCSEs at A – C.

💛 67.4% have the equivalent of at least 5 GCSEs A-C

💛 46.3% have the equivalent of at least 2 A Levels

23.6% of the population has the equivalent of a Degree, which is less than a quarter and perhaps a little lower than a lot of the country, however, a Degree isn’t the bee-all-and-end-all and it certainly doesn’t mean that we are uneducated or – most importantly – stupid.

Now, don’t get me wrong, Grimsby’s Smoked Haddock is the absolute best – in my opinion. However, that’s not to say that fish is the ONLY good food we have on offer.

💛 Millers offers the nicest curry.

💛 Curious Cat and Abbys do a great range of meals

💛 Tredici does ah-mazing pizza

💛 Mockingbird knows how to do chicken better than almost anywhere