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The challenge we face
'It has been hell living here in recent years, but all that is changing. I'm really optimistic now'
Local resident, East Manchester
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Our most deprived neighbourhoods have a lot in common. Poor housing, poor health, poor education, few job opportunities and high crime rates.
Putting that into perspective, that means people living in our most deprived areas have to face:
o worklessness - in the 10 per cent most deprived wards in 1998, 44 per cent of people relied on means tested benefits compared with a national average of 22 per cent;
o child poverty three times higher than in less deprived areas; and
o 30 per cent higher mortality rates.
Why it matters
These problems hit the residents of deprived communities hard. But there are many wider effects. The waste of potential holds back the country's prosperity. The taxpayer gets a poor deal as spending on crime and benefits is higher than it needs to be. And this level of inequality has a disproportionate effect on young people and ethnic minority residents - 70 per cent of all English ethnic minority residents live in the country's 88 most deprived districts.
That's why the Government has set out an ambitious vision for narrowing the gap between deprived neighbourhoods and the rest of the country so that, within 10 to 20 years, no-one should be seriously disadvantaged by where they live.
The aim is to deliver economic prosperity, safe communities, high quality education, decent housing and better health to the poorest parts of the country. Race equality is a cross-cutting theme, underpinning all of these objectives.
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'We have made some progress, but we have further to go. Today we set out fresh challenges, and fresh thinking to meet them. Because one child raised in poverty is one too many; one person deprived the chance to learn or work, one too many; one old person scared to leave their home, one too many; one deprived estate, one too many'
The Prime Minister, January 2001
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A strategy for change
The vision was set out in A New Commitment to Neighbourhood Renewal: A National Strategy Action Plan, launched by the Prime Minister in early 2001.
The strategy builds on what Government is already doing and challenges it to do it better. All corners of government will have responsibility for its effective implementation.
To spearhead change across and outside government, a new cross-government unit - the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit (NRU) - was established in spring 2001. Neighbourhood renewal teams working in Government Offices for the Regions support its work.
There are three main strands to the strategy:
- better spending;
- better partnerships; and
- better information.
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