On October 30, 2025, Jaywick—a small seaside neighbourhood near Clacton-on-Sea in Essex—was named England’s most deprived community for the fourth consecutive time, according to the government’s latest Indices of Multiple Deprivation. The data, which ranks all 33,755 neighbourhoods across England, paints a sobering picture of persistent hardship, especially in certain pockets of the country. For Jaywick and places like it, the news is both a familiar refrain and a call to action.
The Index of Multiple Deprivation, published by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), evaluates neighbourhoods based on weighted factors including income, employment, education, crime, health, barriers to housing, and the living environment. While it doesn’t mean every resident in a deprived area is struggling—or that all in affluent areas are well off—it does reveal where hardship is most concentrated.
This year’s figures show that seven areas in Blackpool also rank among England’s ten most deprived neighbourhoods, joined by one each in Hastings and Rotherham. Middlesbrough stands out as the local council with the highest proportion of very deprived neighbourhoods—half of its communities fall into this category, outpacing even Birmingham and Hartlepool. According to BBC reporting, more than one in five neighbourhoods in the North East and North West make the most deprived list, compared to just one in 25 in London, the South West, and the East of England, and one in 33 in the South East.
The persistence of deprivation is striking. The MHCLG found that 82% of the neighbourhoods classified as most deprived in 2025 were already in that category in 2019. Moreover, 65% of local authorities now contain at least one highly deprived neighbourhood, up from 61% six years ago. The data doesn’t indicate whether individual areas have improved or worsened in absolute terms, but it does show how they compare to each other over time.
For Jaywick, this marks yet another year at the top of a list no community wants to lead. A neighbourhood to the east of Jaywick has held this unenviable title since the index began in its current form in 2010, 2015, and 2019. The area’s struggles have been well documented: the United Nations’ special rapporteur for extreme poverty visited Jaywick in 2018, and in 2024, Tendring District Council agreed on a £126 million, 20-year improvement plan for the community. But despite these efforts, progress remains slow.
Clacton MP Nigel Farage, whose constituency includes Jaywick, told the PA news agency he was "obviously sad that things aren't improving more quickly." Farage said he believes he has "definitely helped" tourism in the area by being a high-profile MP, but he added, "I'm doing what I can, but there's a limit to what one person can do." His remarks echo a sentiment shared by many: that systemic challenges require more than individual effort or short-term fixes.
The government’s response has been to promise renewed investment and a focus on the root causes of deprivation. Alison McGovern, the minister for local government and homelessness, called the statistics a "damning indictment of a system that has left some communities broken, councils pushed to a financial cliff edge and residents facing the brunt of service cuts." She acknowledged that previous policies had "barely begun to break the cycle of deprivation," leading to stagnant local growth and "loss of hope." McGovern said the government is "tackling the root causes of deprivation head on" by investing £500 million in children's development, extending free school meals, and launching a new £1 billion crisis support package across the UK.
These efforts build on earlier initiatives, such as the £5 billion Pride in Place funding announced to support "overlooked" communities, with allocations partly based on the 2019 deprivation figures. The Conservative government also used deprivation data to determine recipients of "Levelling Up" grants. Still, as the numbers suggest, the cycle of hardship in many areas has proven stubbornly difficult to break.
Some experts argue that deeper, structural changes are needed. Dr. Megan Armstrong, associate professor at University College London, told the BBC that working-class communities—especially those in regions that once formed the backbone of Britain’s industrial economy—have been "left to bear the brunt" of de-industrialisation "with few alternatives or support." She added, "Successive governments have failed to reinvest or repair the damage, instead pursuing policies of austerity and privatisation that have further deepened inequality. Breaking that cycle requires sustained investment, structural reform, and genuine community engagement."
Local leaders and residents in Jaywick echo this call for more support. Tendring District Council, in a statement, said the latest data "highlights the scale of the challenge" but does not "reflect the progress made since 2019 or the strength of the people who call Jaywick Sands home." Council leader Mark Stephenson described Jaywick as a "truly special place" and urged the government to provide extra funding.
For those living in Jaywick, the reality of deprivation is felt daily. Local resident Christopher Thompson, 60, told the BBC, "[Jaywick] is deprived, it needs investment, there is nothing here for the kids. The community is amazing—amazing people down here, they all help each other out." His words highlight a paradox: while the statistics are grim, the spirit of community remains strong.
Faith groups and charities are also stepping up. Sam Ward, UK chief executive of The Message Trust, told Premier Christian News that the updated statistics "help us and inform us, as a church, what we should be doing and where we should be focusing our attention." Ward said he was saddened that "neighbourhoods like Jaywick once again find themselves as the number one most deprived community, because it indicates that the resources that are most needed aren’t necessarily being utilised in the right way." He shared that his own neighbourhood in Openshaw, east Manchester, transformed after 25 years of prayer, service, and local investment in businesses, education, and housing. The Message Trust’s Eden teams and Community Grocery stores are now working in deprived areas such as Blackpool and Middlesbrough to bring "practical help and gospel hope." Ward believes true change begins when churches and charities live among the people they serve: "When we begin to experience some of the issues our neighbours are facing, we feel compelled to do something about it."
The Index of Multiple Deprivation is not just a list; it’s a tool for targeting resources and measuring progress. It also serves as a stark reminder that deprivation is not confined to one region or demographic. There are pockets of hardship surrounded by affluence in every part of England. For instance, while the North and Midlands have the highest concentrations of deprivation, the least deprived neighbourhood is in Harpenden, near St Albans in Hertfordshire.
As policymakers, community leaders, and residents grapple with these findings, the challenge remains clear: addressing deprivation will require more than statistics and statements. It calls for long-term commitment, genuine engagement, and a willingness to invest where the need is greatest. For Jaywick and other communities like it, the hope is that the next report will finally bring better news.
