Communities hurt by decades of disadvantage

FORMER industrial and mining communities in regions like the North East are facing “entrenched disadvantage” stretching back some 50 years, the latest research on social mobility has found.

- GRAEME WHITFIELD

So-called 'left-behind communities' in the region that were rapidly de-industrialised throughout the late 20th century are still disadvantaged and facing decline after decades in the same condition, the Social Mobility Commission warned.

The Commission's latest State Of The Nation report highlights stark differences in social mobility across the regions and nations of the UK.

People in parts of the North East face fewer job opportunities, a lack of growth and a worse childhood as a result of where they live, the Commission said. And it warned about the class disparities in the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training (Neets), a group that has grown in recent years.