Poverty ‘shifting from inner to outer London’

Poor neighbourhoods are increasing in number in outer London boroughs but getting fewer in the centre, a new analysis by the University of Sheffield has shown.

Although the poorest places in the capital are still in the eastern centre of the city, it appears that poverty is being pushed out into the suburbs.

The analysis shows that:

• 430 neighbourhoods in London have become significantly more deprived than their neighbours since 2004, 400 of them in the outer boroughs.
• In contrast, 374 neighbourhoods across London (mainly in the west and central parts of the city) have become significantly less deprived.

The poverty data is based on an analysis by Alasdair Rae at the University of Sheffield of the official Indices of Multiple Deprivation, which measure relative poverty across England between 2004 and 2010.

The analysis was reported in the Guardian (11 April 2012). The newspaper also printed a colour-coded map of London highlighting the location of the most deprived areas.