The constituency comprises the main towns of Great Yarmouth and Gorleston-on-Sea, which lie either side of the mouth of the River Yare. In addition, there are twenty-one surrounding parishes that stretch from East and West Somerton in the north of the constituency, down to Hopton-on-Sea on the Norfolk-Suffolk border.
As a coastal constituency, the region has deep ties to the sea, notably connected to the renowned Lord Nelson, and it supported a flourishing herring industry in the 18th century. Caister-on-Sea hosts the UK’s only offshore lifeboat operating independently of the RNLI. From any point along the coastline, the thirty 2-megawatt wind turbines on Scroby Sandbank, situated just over a mile-and-a-half offshore, are a striking landmark, visible for miles across the flat Norfolk landscape and a popular attraction.
Great Yarmouth is renowned as a major seaside resort, one of the largest in the UK. Its holiday resorts extend along the coast on both sides of the town, drawing millions of British holidaymakers annually. Since the North Sea oil and gas boom, the town has played a key role in the offshore sector, servicing oil and gas platforms. With a shift toward alternative energy, many companies are now focusing on expanding the local economy through renewable energy opportunities.