This new measure provides a snapshot of the condition of different neighbourhoods against five different types of need, each reflecting the main benchmarks of success that sit beneath the government’s five missions:
- Economic growth: This domain reflects the economic conditions of different neighbourhoods, and includes, for instance, levels of worklessness, access to high quality jobs including in high-growth industries, levels of labour productivity, and skills
- Opportunity: This domain reflects the extent that different neighbourhoods experience child poverty, deprivation affecting children and young people; limited access to childcare services; low educational attainment in Key Stages 2 and 4, as well as the general quality of local schools
- Health: This domain reflects the quality of neighbourhood health and health services, including the prevalence of disability and adult social care need; life expectancy and mortality rates; ill health; and levels of access to health services
- Crime: This domain reflects the extent that different neighbourhoods experience high levels of crime, and includes violent crime, burglary, theft and criminal damage.
- Energy: This domain reflects the extent that energy is a barrier to progress across different neighbourhoods, and includes the proportion of households in fuel poverty; dwellings with low energy efficiency; as well as a carbon footprint measurement
Using this new measure analysis shows that:
- Neighbourhoods with the highest level of need are largely concentrated in the North of England, particularly around post-industrial cities
- Acute need is concentrated in coastal towns such as Blackpool, Tendring, and Great Yarmouth
- There is a strong correlation with deprivation and lack of progress against the government’s missions
- Authorities with lower average need often contain small clusters of neighbourhoods experiencing high levels of disadvantage across multiple domains
- Areas that are struggling economically also tend to be behind on both health and opportunity domains