OCSI report into Deprivation in Rural Norfolk

From Norfolk RCC

February 2007 saw the launch of the Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion (OCSI) report into deprivation in rural Norfolk. The research was commissioned by Norfolk Rural Community Council on behalf of Norfolk Investing in Communities partnership and uncovered striking evidence of previously hidden pockets of deprivation in rural Norfolk. Not only does this research provides valuable information into where projects aimed at reducing deprivation should be targeted, but it also indicates the extent of the rural share of deprivation in Norfolk. In some incidents this share of deprivation equates to a 60% current under funding of rural areas in relation to deprivation. This research therefore has the potential to radically alter the way funding is currently allocated and ultimately transform the lives of many people who otherwise may have missed out.

The background

As long as there have been programs to address deprivation, then the question has been asked; ‘how do we target deprivation?’ One aspect of that question is which geographical areas to we channel resources into to achieve the best overall effect e.g. the greatest reduction in deprivation. The solution has often been to target those areas that appear to be the most deprived. In response a whole range of tools and measures have been developed to determine exactly where those areas are. One such measure is the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). It is used by government as a way of comparing areas and although it is far from perfect is widely accepted. However one of the major problems has been the level at which data is collected.

The IMD is normally calculated at Super Output Area level. This is a geographical unity of approximately 1,500 people. In rural areas of Norfolk such an area can be both very large and encompass many different communities. Therefore the resultant ‘averaged’ score for the area does not represent the real picture in any one of the individual communities. There is a real risk that this average score will hide pockets of high deprivation in small communities, as less deprived communities in the surrounding areas push down the deprivation scores.

This is the problem that Oxford Consultants for Social inclusion (OCSI) were set to solve. OCSI’s solution was to use statistical modelling to recalculate the IMD at the Output Area level. Output Areas are approximately 300 people in size and therefore provide a finer level of detail. Although this does not exclude any of the high deprivation areas we already know about (mainly in urban areas) as predicted by many working in the field this research has thrown up new areas of high deprivation in rural parts of Norfolk. In addition the research has also demonstrated that the share of deprivation in rural areas is far higher than many had expected. The implication of this is approximately a 60% under funding of rural areas in relation to deprivation.

Copy of the full report

Technical report to accompany the main report

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