Inequalities in likelihood of living in polluted neighbourhoods
About 2 mins
Key points
- People who live in more deprived areas are more likely to live in neighbourhoods with higher pollution.
- People from minority ethnic groups are more likely to live in neighbourhoods with higher levels of air pollution, compared with white people.
- Younger people are more likely to live in neighbourhoods with higher air pollution levels, compared with older people.
- Non-disabled people are slightly more likely than disabled people to live in the neighbourhoods with the highest levels of air pollution.
Exposure to air pollution can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and cancer, and may cause damage to the reproductive and central nervous systems. In particular, exposure to air pollution in childhood can have lifelong effects – it may affect cognitive development or increase the risk of developing a chronic disease.
These charts show the proportions of people by age, ethnicity and disability that live in neighbourhoods with different levels of air pollution.
- People who live in more deprived areas are more likely to live in neighbourhoods with higher air pollution. 13% of people living in the most deprived neighbourhoods live in the 10% of neighbourhoods with the highest air pollution. This compares with only 7% of people in the least deprived neighbourhoods.
- 36% of black, black British, Caribbean or African people, 33% of people of ‘other’ ethnic groups, 28% of Asian or Asian British people and 21% of people of mixed or multiple ethnic groups live in the 10% most polluted neighbourhoods. This compares with just 7% of white people living in the most polluted neighbourhoods.
- Less than 1% of people with a black, black British, Caribbean or African heritage and only 1% of people from an Asian or Asian British background live in the least polluted 10% of areas. This compares with 11% of white people.
- People aged over 64 are the least likely age group to live in polluted areas, with 6% of over-64s living in the 10% most polluted neighbourhoods compared with 16% of 25 to 34-year-olds.
- The proportion of non-disabled people living in the most polluted neighbourhoods is slightly greater (11%) than for disabled people (9%).
In part, these patterns could reflect that some groups are more likely to live in towns and cities (minority ethnic groups, and young people, for example), and others in more rural areas, and as a result will experience very different pollution levels.
Air pollution is higher in more deprived areas, and different population groups have a different likelihood of living in more deprived areas. Therefore, inequalities in likelihood of living in more polluted areas will partially reflect inequalities in their likelihood of living in more deprived areas.
- Neighbourhoods are defined as Middle layer Super Output Areas (MSOAs), based on 2011 Census areas. MSOAs are geographical areas that comprise 2,000–6,000 households (5,000–15,000 people).
- The analysis is restricted to MSOAs in England only, due to data availability at this geographical level.
- Air pollution is measured in terms of air quality score. This is available within the local air quality dataset from the English Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) and it reflects pollutant concentration for four air pollutants – nitrogen dioxide, benzene, sulphur dioxide and particulates.
- Deprivation is measured through an adjusted Index of Multiple Deprivation, which includes only the Income Deprivation, Employment Deprivation, and Education, Skills and Training Deprivation domains. Domains that include data on health and neighbourhood characteristics analysed as part of this evidence hub topic area were excluded. The excluded domains are: Health Deprivation and Disability, Crime, Barriers to Housing and Services and Living Environment Deprivation.
- MSOAs are grouped into air pollution deciles based on this air quality score. For each air pollution decile, mid-year population estimates are used to calculate a weighted average life expectancy.
- Disability is defined as reporting any physical or mental health condition(s) or illness(es) that lasts or is expected to last 12 months or more, and that limits someone’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities either a little or a lot.
Data source: Health Foundation analysis of Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Indices of Deprivation, England, 2019; Office for National Statistics, Mid-Year Population Estimates for Middle layer Super Output Areas, UK 2020; Office for National Statistics, Census, UK 2021
