Several towns and cities made the deprivation list
Walsall was among the top 50 poorest places.
A number of Midlands towns and cities have been named among the poorest in England in a new study.
Each area of the country was given a score based on analysis of income, employment, education, health, crime, housing and the state of the local environment.
And it was a mixed bag for the Midlands, a region where many areas historically suffer with deprivation.
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Birmingham is the second poorest place in the entire country out of around 300 areas, according to this study by the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
Things have worsened since the national deprivation list was last updated pre-Covid in 2019, when it was in 7th place.
The city is only behind Middlesbrough in terms of most deprived in England.
It was the only Midlands representative in the unwanted top 10.
In terms of our region, Nottingham is classed as the next most deprived and in 18th overall.
It’s closely followed by Stoke-on-Trent in 19th.
Perhaps surprisingly, parts of the Black Country are further down the list with Walsall in 27th and Wolverhampton in 32nd.
Sandwell was previously considered one of the most deprived boroughs in the country but things have improved somewhat, at least according to this metric. The borough is now ranked 54th poorest, no longer in the top 50.
Other Midlands areas in the top 50 included Leicester, Derby and Coventry.
The study once again provided evidence of England’s divide between north and Midlands and the south.
Most places towards the top of the list were in the north of England.
- Birmingham – 2nd
- Nottingham – 18th
- Stoke-on-Trent – 19th
- Walsall – 27th
- Wolverhampton – 32nd
- Leicester – 38th
- Derby – 46th
- Coventry – 48th