Living Standards

In both London and the rest of England, growth in hourly earnings between 2017 and 2019 was fastest for the bottom 10% of jobs; increasing by 4.6% in the capital and 5% in the rest of England. This rise was likely driven by the increase in the minimum and living wages. The National Living Wage (paid to workers over 25) increased from £7.50 an hour in 2017/18 to £8.21 an hour in 2019. 

In London, weekly and annual earnings rose fastest for the highest 10% of jobs. This is particularly true for annual pay (which includes bonuses) which rose by 4% in the two years to 2019 for the top 10%, compared to 1.1% for the bottom 10% and only 0.1% for the 4th decile.

The figures presented here are adjusted for inflation, meaning that for all deciles in both London and the rest of England, earnings increased at least as fast as the cost of living. This …

This indicator shows the large disparity in poverty rates for children in different London boroughs. Tower Hamlets is the borough with the highest rate of child poverty (after housing costs), with a rate (55%) which is more than three times as high as that of the boroughs of Richmond and City of London with the lowest rates (17%).

It also demonstrates the large impact that the cost of housing has on poverty in the capital. In the borough with the highest poverty levels (Tower Hamlets), 27% of children are classified as being in poverty before housing costs are considered. Taking account of housing costs increases this figure to 55%. 

In all but two boroughs, the child poverty rate at least doubles when housing costs are accounted for (and even these two Barking and Dagenham and Newham the `After Housing Costs` rate is 1.9 times the `Before…

The E-food Desert Index (EFDI) is a composite index which measures accessibility to groceries, recently co-published by the Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC) in conjunction with Dr Andy Newing at the University of Leeds. The index looks at:

• Proximity and density of grocery retail stores
• Transport time and distance
• Public transport accessibility
• Demographic characteristics of neighbourhoods which affect food access (car availability, income poverty)
• Online grocery retailer availability and propensity for online shopping.

The index and map identify a new driver of inequalities in access to groceries - 'e-food deserts' - which are remoter parts of the capital that suffer comparatively poor access to both physical retail and limited provision of online grocery services.

The map shown here is excerpted for London, based on the wider ind…

Deprivation varies significantly across London, and, to truly understand the diversity of deprivation across the city, it is useful to adapt national indices to compare within just London itself, excluding variations outside the capital. Mapped here are the deciles of neighbourhoods in London as defined by the Index of Multiple Deprivation, which integrates deprivation domains relating to income, employment, crime, living environment, education, health and barriers to housing and services, in various proportions, to produce an overall index.

Every neighbourhood in England has been given a deprivation score based on various measures which form each domain above, integrated together in various proportions to produce a single value. They are then ranked for England. We have taken these rankings and rebased, by excluding all non-London areas …

In 2014, jobs at the 10th percentile of gross weekly pay in London had weekly pay of almost 18% lower (in real terms) than in 2008. This compares to a just above 8.5% fall for those at the 10th percentile in England overall. 

Pay for these jobs in London has also failed to recover, still being 8.3% lower in real terms than their 2008 level in 2019. Whereas in 2020, we see weekly pay decline further with almost 11% below that of the level in 2008. This could be an initial indication of how the pandemic has impacted weekly earnings. Within London, only the top 90th percentile have not experienced a decline in weekly earnings between 2019 and 2020, when comparing them to real 2008 level earnings. 

The volatility of weekly earnings across the years should be acknowledged. When looking at the change in weekly earnings within the last year (in 2…

The benefit cap limits the amount of benefit that most working-age people can receive. In London, the limit is £23,000 per year or £15,410 for single adults with no children; this was reduced in 2015. The benefit cap is applied by either reducing Universal Credit or Housing Benefit (for those not claiming Universal Credit).

The benefit cap reduced the benefits of nearly 20,000 families in London in November 2019 (11,062 had Universal Credit reduced and another 8,899 had Housing Benefit reduced). The number of families with their benefits capped in London has risen by 76% over the last five years and 87,665 London families have been affected by the cap since its introduction in 2013.

The majority of London households affected by the benefit cap in 2019 had their benefits reduced by up to £50 per month.

The typical neighbourhood in 24 (of 32) London boroughs is more income-deprived than the typical neighbourhood in England.

This indicator assesses this by comparing the average (median) income deprivation in each borough to the average income deprivation of London overall and the rest of England through a relative deprivation ratio. Boroughs close to the red line have similar average income deprivation levels to the comparison. If they are to the left of the line, they are less income-deprived and if they are to the right of the line they are more income-deprived. 

Tower Hamlets is on average the most income-deprived in comparison to the other London boroughs. The average neighbourhood in the borough is 2.03 times more income-deprived than the average in London, and 2.67 times more income-deprived than the average in the rest of England. O…

Those in the bottom half of the net income distribution in London take home less than a quarter (23.4%) of London’s total net income (before housing costs). On its own, the top decile of London households takes home 32.5% of total net income.

The impact of redistribution through the tax and benefit system can also be seen in this chart; the top decile holds a lower proportion of total net income (32.5%), than it does of gross income (37.4%). In contrast, the bottom decile of London households hold 1.3% of total gross income but 1.7% of total net income. 

Compared to London, the top decile in the rest of England holds a lower proportion of total net income (26.5%). However, a higher proportion of total gross income is held in this decile in the rest of England (39.4%). 

Those in the bottom decile in the rest of England, in both total net and…

This indicator shows one way of measuring income inequality; the 90:10 net income ratio. This compares the net income (before housing costs) of those at the 90th net income percentile with those at the 10th net income percentile. A higher figure means that inequality is higher.

In 2018/19 those in the 90th net income percentile in London took home 10.5 times more than those in the 10th net income percentile (a 90:10 net income ratio of 10.5). In the rest of England the 90:10 net income ratio is 5.3.

Net income inequality has risen gradually in London over the last 20 years. In contrast, it has been relatively stable in England overall. 

This means that the gap between the rich and poor in London and the rest of England is much larger today than it was two decades ago. In 1996/97, the gap between London’s 90:10 net income ratio and that of t…

More children are materially deprived in London than the rest of England whether or not they are in poverty. Material deprivation is based on a weighted score of responses to questions about what material things - such as a warm winter coat or a safe outdoors space to play - children go without. 

In 2018/19, nearly half (45%) of children living in households in poverty in London are classed as materially deprived, compared with 37% in the rest of England. For children who do not live in households in poverty, the proportion of materially deprived children is 12% in London and 10% in the rest of England. 

More than half (53%) of children in London in poverty went without a holiday away from home for at least one week a year with their family, the highest rate for any item or activity.

In 2011, jobs at the 10th percentile of gross weekly pay in London had weekly pay almost 16% lower (in real terms) than in 2008. This compares to a just above 7% fall for those at the 10th percentile in England overall. Pay for these jobs in London has also failed to recover, still being 8.6% lower in real terms than their 2008 level more than a decade later in 2020. 

Gross weekly pay for jobs towards the top of the distribution (at the 90th percentile) were not so heavily impacted currently by the 2008 financial crisis. Both in London and the Rest of England there was a decline in gross weekly pay of almost 11% and 7% respectively at their low points between 2014 and 2015. From then on, there has been an increase in weekly pay that is between 3% and 4% below the 2008 level in London and England overall.

The median job in London and Englan…

This map shows poverty rate estimates after housing costs for areas known as middle-layer super output areas (MSOAs). These are relatively small areas with an average population of 7,200. These statistics are experimental and so should be considered as indicative rather than definitive, but reveal interesting trends. 

Overall the map shows the large disparity of poverty outcomes both across and within London boroughs. The most concentrated areas of high poverty are in areas such as Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Newham, and the north east of London. There are also noticeable pockets of high poverty rates in areas in west London, such as in Brent and the north ends of Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster.

Only six MSOAs have a poverty rate below 10% in London, all in Outer London boroughs, whilst nine MSOAs have a poverty rate above 45%. Refle…

Londoners who live in families that include a disabled person are more likely to be in poverty than those living in families that do not include a disabled person. 

For example, in the 3 years to 2018/19, 31% of families that included a disabled person were in poverty but only 27% of those who did not were. The gap has been narrower in recent years than in 2014/15 when over 10 percentage points more families with disabled people were in poverty than families without disabled people.

Children, working age adults and pensioners all have higher rates of poverty in London than in the rest of England. Of the three age groups, children have the highest poverty rates with 37% of children in London in poverty, compared to 25% of working-age adults and 24% of pensioners.

In both London and the rest of England, poverty rates fell between 2007/08 and 2017/18 for children but rose or remained flat for working-age adults. The poverty rate for pensioners rose in London but fell in the rest of England.

The difference between poverty rates before and after housing costs shows how much of an impact housing costs have on poverty.

In London, poverty rates almost double when housing costs are accounted for (increasing the poverty rate from 16% to 28%). In the rest of England, the difference is much smaller (increasing poverty rates from 17% to 21%). This shows that, compared to the rest of England, high housing costs are a much more significant driver of poverty in London.

Put another way, this means that accounting for the high housing costs in the capital leads to over one million more people being judged to be in poverty.

Children, working age adults and pensioners all have higher rates of poverty in London than in the rest of England. Of the three age groups, children have the highest poverty rates with 40% of children in London in poverty, compared to 26% of working-age adults and 23% of pensioners. 

In both London and the rest of England, poverty rates fell between 2008/09 and 2018/19 for children and working-age adults in the rest of England. Although, poverty rates remained flat for those working-age adults in London at 20%. Also, the poverty rate for pensioners rose in London but fell in the rest of England. 

Note: MIS figures are updated to reflect the report produced by Loughborough University for TfL in 2019. For family types where updates are not available we have carried forward the 2016/17 data and adjusted for inflation by CPIH. Destitution is defined by the JRF as people who went without 2 or more essentials in the past month because they couldn't afford them, or their income is extremely low

Data source: Poverty thresholds are from Households Below Average Income 2017/18, Department for Work and Pensions. Minimum Income Standard thresholds are based on the Minimum Income Standard (MIS) for London, Trust for London 2018. Destitution in the UK 2018, JRF

The table shows different definitions and thresholds necessary to not be considered either in poverty or deprived. The amount of income is dependent on the type of household.

The Mini…

More than a quarter (28%) of Londoners live in households that are in poverty (after housing costs - AHC), meaning that 2.47 million Londoners live in poverty in 2018/19. The poverty rate (AHC) in London is 7 percentage points higher than in the rest of England 

The proportion of households in poverty after housing costs (AHC) was relatively stable between 1996/97 and 2018/19:

• In London poverty rates varied between 26% and 30%; and
• in the rest of England poverty rates varied between 20% and 24%.

Poverty rates (AHC) in London have been higher than in the rest of England for at least the last two decades.

In contrast, poverty rates before housing costs (BHC) over the last 20 years have been more similar between London and the rest of England. Current rates of BHC poverty are slightly higher in the rest of England (17%) than in London (16%). Aga…

Poverty rates vary significantly across different demographic groups in London and the rest of England.

Overall, poverty rates amongst men and women are similar. However, in the rest of England both men and women have a lower poverty rate (with 21% and 22% respectively) compared to those in London (28% and 29% respectively). 

Within London, poverty rates are almost twice as high for BME groups (39%) as for white groups (21%). Amongst the different family types, single parents with children are most likely to experience poverty. In London, 54% of this group were in poverty in 2018/19. Between 2014/15 and 2018/19, London pensioners experienced the largest increase in poverty rates. The poverty rate for couple pensioners rose by 6 percentage points (from 15% to 21%) and for single pensioners also by 6 percentage points (from 22% to 28%).

The most recent estimates of overall poverty rates for London boroughs are from modelled small-area estimates using 2013/14 data. According to these, the boroughs with the highest proportion of people living in poverty are Tower Hamlets (39%), Newham (37%) and Hackney (36%). In contrast, these estimates suggest that Bromley (15%), Richmond upon Thames (15%) and Bexley (16%) have the lowest rates of poverty. 

These borough-level poverty rates are based on aggregations of lower-level figures (Middle Layer Super Output Area) that were derived using a combination of responses to the Family Resources Survey and information from the 2011 Census and administrative data.

Households living in poverty are spending a significantly larger proportion of their net income on housing costs than households not living in poverty. This is true both in London and in the rest of England. 

London households in poverty are estimated, on average, to spend 56% of their total net income on housing costs. In comparison, those living in households which are not in poverty spend just 13% on average. The trend is similar in the rest of England with households in poverty spending 37% of their income on housing compared to 9% for those not in poverty, but the gap is much smaller than in the capital. Compared to the rest of England, both types of households in London are spending proportionally more of their net income on housing costs.

Wealth is very unequally distributed. In London, those in the top wealth decile (i.e. the 10% of people with the highest wealth) hold 42.5% of London’s total net wealth. Those in the bottom decile (the bottom 10%) hold 0% of London’s total net wealth, due to negative net wealth held by households in the bottom decile.  

In the rest of England a similar divide is found, where the top decile holds 42.6% of total net wealth and the bottom holds 0.1% of total net wealth.

Total net wealth is an estimate of the value of wealth held by all private households, including net property, net financial, private pension and physical wealth.

The proportion of people living in poverty in London almost doubles when housing costs are taken into account (rising from 16% to 28%). 

This gap between before and after housing costs measures of poverty is much larger in the capital than in the rest of the country. For example, in 2018/19 the gap was 12 percentage points in London, compared to 4 percentage points in the rest of England. This demonstrates the fact that the cost of housing is a much larger driver of poverty in London than in the rest of the country.

The impact housing costs have on poverty in London has also increased since the early 2000s. For example, in 2003/04 the gap between before and after housing costs measures of poverty in capital was 8 percentage points, whilst between 2010/11 and 2017/18 the gap has been between 12 and 14 percentage points.

This indicator shows the proportion of the population in each region in England who are in the bottom and top deciles of the overall income distribution nationally after housing costs in 2018/19. 

It shows that, in comparison to all other regions in England, London has the largest proportion of its population that are in the bottom decile (16%). The South West has the lowest proportion, with just 7.2% of its population in the bottom income decile. 

Some 17% of Londoners are in the top decile of England’s income distribution, the highest of any region in England. The regions surrounding London, the South East and East of England, have the next highest proportion of residents in the top income decile and 13.6% and 13.5% respectively.