One in three deprived areas locked out of ‘Levelling Up’ funding

New Salvation Army research suggests that more than a third of England’s most deprived areas will not benefit from the government’s £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund.

A new report, Understanding People, Understanding Places, finds that while coastal and rural areas feature some of the highest levels of deprivation, these are also the areas most likely to miss out on Levelling Up investment.

The Salvation Army analysed the local labour market in comprehensive detail and asked local people what they needed to find stable work. The government’s Levelling Up analysis did not break the labour market into as much detail and also divided need up into larger areas which meant pockets of deprivation in otherwise more affluent areas were not prioritised.

The report warns that unless the government rethinks how it calculates an area’s need, entire communities will be locked out of Levelling Up Funding and left to spiral into further poverty.

Other findings highlight how the government prioritised 93 areas to be given access to ‘Levelling Up’ funding but a further 45 are in urgent need of investment. The analysis shows a number of coastal areas around the country, including in the North West, Yorkshire and The Humber, East Midlands, the East of England and the South West, that should be high priority but were missed out of the government’s calculations.

The Salvation Army is calling on the government to: reconsider how funding is allocated from the Levelling Up Fund, with coastal communities being recognised as an investment priority; develop a new plan of investment in accessible childcare to allow people to access work and training opportunities; engage with communities to identify what investment will best ‘Level Up’ these areas; and invest in skills and employment support; to help individuals out of low-skill, low-wage employment.

Rebecca Keating, The Salvation Army’s Director of Employment Services, said: “The £4.8 billion earmarked for Levelling Up is a bold move by the government and an opportunity to lift thousands out of unemployment but we are worried that this investment is missing many key areas in serious decline.

 “As well as analysing employment and income data, we talked to people to find out first-hand what people needed. Many people told us they have been stuck in low-skill seasonal jobs, which are now at risk following the pandemic but they are too old to easily access training courses to reskill. One of the most common issues are single parents faced with jobs offering wages that don’t cover the cost of their childcare.

“We want to encourage the government to listen to the communities who need their help. Look up from the spreadsheet and see what we are seeing on the ground.

“Every day we work with people who are being pushed even further from employment as local businesses close, or they are trapped in a cycle of low-paid seasonal work and zero hours contracts. While there are similarities in the government’s analysis of need and our report, there are too many areas of severe deprivation that have been overlooked. We must ensure investment reaches these people; it’s the only way to truly level up the country.”