Inequality
The gap between the richest and poorest in London
Key findings
50%
of London's wealth is owned by the richest 10% of its households. The bottom 50% own just over 5%.
8x
greater is the income of someone just in the top 10% in London in comparison to someone just in the bottom 10%.
Overview
Inequality explains the incongruence between two pictures of London: one of the booming centre of global finance and home to many of the world’s rich, and the other of a city with high levels of poverty and deprivation.
Income inequality is significantly greater in London than elsewhere in England. In the three years to 2015/2016, the income of someone just inside the top 10% was eight times higher than someone just inside the bottom 10% of earners, and the top 10% earned more than the bottom 50%. However, the lowest 10% of earners have seen their wages increase since 2011, while median earners and the top 10% have experienced declines.
Wealth inequality is far wider than income inequality in London. 50% of London’s wealth is earned by the richest 10% of its households, while the bottom 50% own just over 5%. And someone just inside the top 10% in terms of wealth owns 295 times more than someone just inside the bottom 10%. This trend is becoming more extreme in London, with the least wealthy 10% of people losing 32% of their wealth over the last two years, compared to a 2% drop across Great Britain. Meanwhile, the wealth of the top 10% in London has increased by 25%.
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From our Twitter
@povertylondon
This interactive table compares Poverty Child Poverty Inequality Homelessness Temporary Accommodation Evictions Affordability Unemployment Low Pay Benefits Council Tax Support GCSE attainment Infant Mortality Premature Mortality in each London borough. https://www.trustforlondon.org.uk/data/boroughs/overview-of-london-boroughs/ … pic.twitter.com/EuJJzZz4Tf
23 Aug 2018. @Hothi is explaining to our members how @PovertyLondon is changing. Many people use the raw data, but fewer have time to read the full report. Going forward, the Poverty Profile will become more intuitive and interactive for users across #CivilSociety . #BigDataDay pic.twitter.com/QVpyFP4f42
14 Oct 2019. @patrickjbutler uses our @PovertyLondon data to highlight that #TowerHamlets has the highest level of child poverty in #London (43%) as a surge of wealthy incomers are skewing deprivation figures. As a London council leader says the reality of poverty is still very much present https://twitter.com/patrickjbutler/status/1177481438985240577 …
27 Sep 2019Official figures suggest that the proportion of households in work has risen, however in-work poverty remains a growing issue. Our @PovertyLondon data shows that that there are 450,000 more Londoners in working families in poverty compared to 10 years ago http://bit.ly/2ZBVYRr
30 Aug 2019A new report says that elderly people living in the UK suffer some of the highest levels of poverty in western Europe. Our @PovertyLondon data shows that 19% of London’s pensioners live below the poverty line, higher than anywhere else in England (14%) http://bit.ly/2P6l76w
20 Aug 2019