THE least and most deprived neighbourhoods in the city have been revealed as part of a new study with access to jobs, education and housing, risk of early death and exposure to crime all shifting wildly over a matter of miles.

City streets in Northwick, St Peter’s and Battenhall ranked as having excellent access to high-paying jobs, low crime and a better quality of life which was in stark contrast to other homes across the city in Warndon, Tolladine and Ronkswood where attainment in education, limited access to housing and services as well as poor health left these areas of the city amongst the most deprived.

Worryingly, one area in Warndon was ranked amongst the 75 most-deprived areas in the whole of the country in the government’s latest 'indices of deprivation' study which has compiled figures from a range of areas for the first time in five years.

The five most deprived areas in Worcester were all located in Warndon, Tolladine and Brickfields, according to the figures, with the most deprived area located to the north of Warndon between Cranham Drive and the B4639 including Chedworth Drive, Rodborough Drive and the Oasis Academy Warndon.

Read more about the five most deprived areas here

However, the study made good reading for people living in Northwick Close, Seymour Avenue and Pinkett Street where figures show the chance of being a victim of crime is very low, services can be accessed with relative ease and employment rates and high wages are amongst some of the greatest in the city.

Read more about the five least deprived areas here

According to the statistics, the four-mile drive between the most-deprived ranked area of the city in Warndon and the least-deprived in Northwick paint very different pictures for the people living there in terms of jobs and wages, health and access to a good quality of life.

Taking all the data into account, each area of the city was given a score - with the most-deprived areas of Warndon scoring more than 76 - where the higher the score, the more deprived the area is deemed to be - with parts of Northwick, seen as the least-deprived, scoring just four.

Residents in Northwick are also expected to have one of the best living environments both inside and out. Two areas in St Peter's were ranked the second and fifth least deprived with Battenhall taking third. The neighbourhoods between Northwick and Bevere were ranked fourth.

The lowest crime score for the possibility of becoming a victim to crime amongst the statistics was Henwick.

Northwick again was ranked the highest in level of attainment in education and skills and Battenhall had the lowest chances of premature death and poor quality of life through mental and physical illnesses.

Areas in north Warndon scored poorly for low wages and unemployment, higher risk of crime and poor health with people living there having some of the biggest barriers to accessing housing and other services in the city.

The neighbourhoods were also deemed by far the most deprived for children in the city and was also the most deprived for the elderly and was also the lowest-scoring area in the city for lack of attainment and skills amongst children and adults. Northwick again scored the lowest in terms of deprivation amongst children and the elderly.

City councillor Ceri Stalker, who represents Warndon, said: "There will always be people who need help in every area and there are areas where people need more help than others.

"It will always be very difficult to affect that, especially when we are in a time where there is still austerity, the virus, and a lot of uncertainty about jobs.

"It is a thing we all take very seriously and are trying to look at ways to move forward to help people in the most need whether they are in a deprived community or whether they are in need somewhere else."

Three of the five most deprived areas encompassed much of the city to the north of Tolladine Road including Rose Avenue, Holly Mount, Tunnel Hill, homes north of Brickfields Road and parts of Blackpole Road.

The five most deprived areas for children in the city also included parts of Tolladine and Brickfields, as well as north Warndon, with parts of Ronkswood including homes south of Newtown Road and around Canterbury Road also scoring poorly in deprivation figures affecting children.

It was a similar picture for deprivation amongst the elderly with the north of Warndon again scoring low with the area where Windermere Drive meets Langdale Drive ranking the worst.

Scores were also given to every area on employment which includes the number of people who would like to work but are unable to do so due to unemployment, sickness or disability, or caring responsibilities.

Areas in the north of Warndon again scored poorly closely followed by Tolladine. Dines Green was also highlighted as one of the most deprived areas for employment in the city.

The lack of attainment in education and skills amongst children and adults was again highlighted in Tolladine but also in parts of St John's.

The north of Warndon also rated poorly for crime where it was seen as the area in the city most likely to become a victim. Tolladine was again included with other parts of Warndon and Tunnel Hill amongst some of the highest scoring for crime.

As in most of the categories, the same areas in Tolladine and Warndon were highlighted in the health figures which looked at the risk of premature death and how quality of life was affected through poor physical and mental health whilst also measuring disease and disabilities.

Ease of access to housing and other services, including the many physical and financial barriers, were also included with parts of Henwick, Warndon, Dines Green and Lower Wick having the worst access, according to the data.