South West Regional Skills Enterprise and Employment Analysis 2007/2008

Final Report

6.7 Deprived areas

The Indices of Deprivation (IoD 2004) is a collection of statistical indices which help to highlight areas of particular need. The Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004 (IMD 2004) brings all the indices together to produce an overall picture of deprivation. The South West LSC Strategic Analysis states that, at 8.6%, the South West has the third lowest proportion of its area in the most deprived 20% of England.

Within the South West, the West of England LSC has the greatest proportion of its area in the most deprived 20% in England at 12.9%, followed by Devon and Cornwall LSC at 10.6%. Somerset LSC has the lowest proportion at 4.0% of its area being in the most deprived 20% in England. According to the IMD, the most deprived Super Output Area (SOA) in the region is part of Lawrence Hill ward in Bristol. This is ranked as the 19th most deprived in England and as the most deprived SOA(109) outside the north of England.

Much of the South West areas is polarised in terms of deprivation, with most areas being either end of the deprivation scale. However, those living in North Devon and Cornwall are likely to live in areas that are neither the most nor least deprived, with the exception of those living in Camborne/Redruth and Plymouth.

Of particular relevance to the learning and skills needs of the South West is the Education, Skills and Training Domain. This looks at the achievement and progression of children through the education system and the proportions of working aged adults with no or low-level qualifications. It provides a useful indicator of which areas are in particular need of skills and qualifications.

In respect of this domain, the most deprived areas are in the large urban centres such as Bristol. The polarisation seen in the IMD 2004 is even more prevalent when the education deprivation of the South West is mapped. The majority of the region is not educationally deprived, but each area has pockets of particularly high and significant deprivation.

As with the IMD 2004, the West of England LSC has the greatest proportion of its area in the most educationally deprived 20% of England, at 17.5%. Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole LLSC has the lowest proportion at 6.5%.

Figure 26: Number of SOAs in the most deprived 20% of SOAs in England on the Education, Skills and Training Domain (click image to open in new window)

Notes: (Indices of Deprivation 2004), by South West LLSC
Source: Indices of Deprivation 2004, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

In terms of the 16-19 target and working age adult target, this domain is made up of two sub-domains: Children and Young People; and Skills.

The Skills sub-domain calculates a score based on the proportions of working age adults (aged 25-54) in the area with no or low qualifications (2001) and produces a much more mixed picture across the region than the other domains. The South West LLSCs have similar proportions to each other within the worst 20% of England, with again the West of England LSC having the greatest proportion and Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole having the least.

Figure 27: Number of SOAs in the most deprived 20% of SOAs in England on the Skills Sub-domain of the Education, Skills and Training Domain (click image to open in new window)

Notes: (Indices of Deprivation 2004), by South West LLSC
Source: Indices of Deprivation 2004, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

The Children and Young People sub-domain calculates a deprivation score based on the secondary school absence rate of an area, the average points score of a child at Key Stage 2, 3 and 4, the proportion leaving full-time education at 16, and the proportion not entering HE. The picture here is more polarised than the Skills sub-domain.

The West of England has almost 21% of its area in the worst 20% of England, with Bristol having the two most deprived SOAs in terms of children’s and young people’s educational deprivation. Its nearest statistical neighbour in the South West is Wiltshire and Swindon LLSC, with almost 13% of its area in the worst 20% of England. The latter is evident in the Salisbury area, which has a significantly greater degree of educational deprivation for youngsters than for adults, which is also true of Bristol, Camborne/Redruth, Exeter, and Gloucester. This suggests that there should be a particular focus on the 16-19 agenda in these areas.

Figure 28: SOAs in the most deprived 20% of SOAs in England on the Children and Young People Sub-domain of the Education, Skills and Training Domain (click image to open in new window)

Notes: (Indices of Deprivation 2004), by South West LLSC
Source: Indices of Deprivation 2004, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister

However, educational deprivation is not the sole indicator of interest. The Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index presents a similar picture to the overall Educational, Skills and Training Domain, and shows that the majority of the region is not particularly deprived.

Whilst in the South West, Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole LSC has the lowest proportion of its area being in the overall Education, Learning and Skills Domain, it has the second highest proportion of its area in the worst 20% of England when looking at income deprivation, less than 1% behind the West of England LSC area. This suggests that whilst children in this area are similarly deprived in income terms, they are likely to do better at school than those living in Bristol. At 3%, Wiltshire and Swindon LSC has the lowest proportion of its area in the worst 20% of England.

Figure 29: SOAs in the most deprived 20% of SOAs in England on the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Sub-domain of the Income Domain

Notes: (Indices of Deprivation 2004), by South West LLSC
Source: Indices of Deprivation 2004, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

6.7.1 Rural – access deprivation

In the case of rural deprivation, one issue to explore is access to services. Specifically, there is information about the percentage of rural households within particular distances of 10 key services(110). In 2005, using this measure, access deprivation among South West rural households was greater than the average across England for nine of the services. In particular, the South West had much lower proportions of rural households within 4km of secondary schools, supermarkets and libraries than nationally.

Comparing data from 2000 and 2005 indicates that access deprivation has increased within the region in this period for eight of the services. The biggest changes are in the percentage of South West rural households within 4km of a bank or building society (down 7 percentage points) and within 2km of a post office (down 5 percentage points).

Rural households in the South West have less access to key services than in most of the other English regions. The East of England and West Midlands also have similar levels of access deprivation.

Table 19: Proportion of Rural Households within specific distances of Key Services by Region - 2005

Yellow shading = less than or equal to the English average
Source: Commission for Rural Communities - State of the Countryside Data

(109) SOA is the standard unit for presenting local statistical information
(110) Countryside data issued by the Commission for Rural Communities (CRC) was used.