A vicar has warned of “two Islingtons” after a report revealed that one in three local children live in income-deprived households.
The borough has the third-highest child deprivation in England, and the second-highest in London following Tower Hamlets, according to the ONS English Indices of Deprivation published last week.
The publication also reports that 36% of local elderly residents also live in income-deprived households.
“People are living radically different lives, but living next door to each other”, said Rev. Simon Harvey of St. Mary’s Church.
“In some London boroughs, the poorest are being moved out; in Islington, everyone agrees it’s precious to keep mixture and balance.”
The report highlights, said Rev. Harvey, the “big challenge” of uniting the borough, and the importance of community organisations such as St Mary’s. “On Sunday mornings, you have someone who runs a bank sitting next to someone who doesn’t have a bank account. We try to find ways of helping those two listen, support and understand each other. The potential is enormous.”
“Take Milner Square – it’s two-thirds social housing, but some of the houses are owned by people who are millionaires because you have to be one now to own there. You don’t get that in other parts of the country.”
The report marks an improvement on the previous 2010 figures, where 49% of local children were reported to live in deprived households.
Among the general Islington population, one in five live in deprived households, ranking it in the worst 20 local authority districts nationally.
“The impression people get from the outside is that it must be prosperous all round. It’s not”, emphasised Rev. Harvey.
The ONS defines deprivation as “unmet needs caused by a lack of resources of all kinds, not just financial”.
Picture by Vladimir Pustovit, Flickr
