Oldham tops list of most deprived towns in England

Towns in the North-west make up half of the worst affected areas

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Oldham, Greater Manchester is the most deprived town in England, according to a new analysis by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

West Bromwich, in the West Midlands, ranked as the second most deprived town in the country.

The study looked at levels of deprivation in local areas of towns and cities across the country.

Over 60 per cent of local areas in Oldham and West Bromwich are ranked in the most deprived 20 per cent of areas in England.

However, Guildford, Surrey, was found to be the least deprived.

The list took into account multiple factors for the study. Income, employment, health and disability, education, skills and training deprivation, crime, barriers to housing and services, and living environment were all analysed.

The ONS found that all types of deprivation are more prevalent in urban areas.

Towns in the North-west make up half of the worst affected.

According to the study, the 10 most deprived towns in England are:

1. Oldham (65.2 per cent of local areas in the most deprived 20 per cent)
2. West Bromwich (62.8 per cent)    
3. Liverpool (59.4 per cent)
4. Walsall (57.5 per cent)
5. Birmingham (57.5 per cent)
6. Nottingham (57.3 per cent)    
7. Middlesbrough (55.9 per cent)    
8. Salford (55.6 per cent)   
9. Birkenhead (54.5 per cent)   
10. Rochdale (53.8 per cent)

However, the study found that if deprivation was uniformly distributed across England, 10 per cent of local areas in each town or city would be in the 10 per cent most deprived areas in the country.

The study also found the towns and cities with the highest proportion of least deprived local areas, many of which are in the South-east.

These are:

1. Guildford (61.4 per cent)   
2. Woking (59.7 per cent)    
3. St Albans (55.1 per cent)   
4. Sutton Coldfield (47.8 per cent)   
5. Bath (47.5 per cent)   
6. Harrogate (46.0 per cent)  
7. Solihull (45.6 per cent)
8. Cheltenham (44.0 per cent)  
9. Reading (42.0 per cent)   
10. High Wycombe (41.3 per cent)

Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, also has the most home owners of any town in the country, with 81 per cent of the population owning their own home.

Conversely, Leeds comes in with the lowest proportion of home owners, with 48.7 of locals owning their own home.