Data Description
The report below descripes analysis concerning the proportion of individuals living in low income. This is defined as the proportion living with less than 60% of the median household income in 2010/11. This is measured before and after housing costs.
Data points are measured in 2-year periods i.e., 2013/14 – 2015/16. This is described in the text as FY14-16.
Analytical Description
The proportion of individuals living with low income before accounting for housing costs was 18.1% from FY14-16, then peaked at 22.4% in FY19-21 before falling to 20.8% in FY20-22. The proportion of individuals living in low income households after housing costs was 22.2% in FY14-16, then peaking in FY19-21 at 26.0% before falling slightly in FY20-22 to 25.5%. The difference between the percentages for before and after housing costs has remained fairly consistent across years and averages 4.2pp (percentage points).
The North East has consistently had a higher proportion of individuals living in households with low income, before accounting for housing costs, than the majority of other regions. In FY14-16 the only region that had a higher proportion than the North East was the West Midlands at 19.3%. Yorkshire and the Humber had at the same rate as the North East. Yorkshire and the Humber and the North West did subsequently overtake the North East, but by FY20-22 had fallen back below the North East level, and the only region that was higher was the West Midlands.
The pattern is after accounting for housing costs, with proportions in the North East and the West Midlands remaining higher than the other regions, apart from London. London has a much higher proportion of individuals living in low income households after housing costs than any other region in England, reflecting higher housing costs in London. However, by FY20-22, the percentage in London had fallen below that of the North East and the West Midlands.
The local authorities in the North East LEP in 2019 have some of the most deprived Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs) across the country, when looking at income deprivation. South Tyneside has 34 of its 102 (33.3%) LSOAs in the 10% most deprived nationally for income, and Newcastle Upon Tyne has 28.0% in the bottom 10% nationally. All local authorities have a higher than average proportion of LSOAs in the bottom 10% nationally, aside from North Tyneside, where 9.9% of LSOAs are in the bottom 10%. However, when compared to other local authorities in the North East region, those that fall under the North East LEP area do perform slightly better. The graph below shows the proportion of LSOAs in the most deprived 10% nationally for income, with blue bars showing local authorities in the North East LEP area and black bars showing other local authorities in the North East.
In 2019 the North East LEP had 35.2% of it’s LSOAs in the bottom 20% for income deprivation, but this was still lower than Greater Manchester LEP (36.6%), Liverpool City Region LEP (44.0%), and Greater Birmingham & Solihull (38.6%). However, the North East LEP had a higher percentage of LSOAs in the bottom 20% compared to Leeds City Region (31.3%), West of England CA (12.7%), and D2N2 (21.6%), and was higher than the national average excluding London, which was 19.9%. Over 50% of LSOAs in the North East LEP fall within the bottom 40% for income.