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15 September 2005

STATISTICAL PRESS RELEASE-FAMILY RESOURCES SURVEY URBAN RURAL REPORT STATISTICS

Three in ten households in the Rural West fall into the lowest income band.

This is one of the key findings in a report called "Family Resources Survey Urban Rural Report Northern Ireland 2003-04"

Other key facts include:

Household Characteristics

  • In 2003-04, the average number of persons per household in Northern Ireland was 2.6. The Rural West had the highest provincial average at 2.8 persons, whilst the Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area (henceforth referred to as the BMUA) averaged only 2.4 persons.
  • The Rural West had the highest proportion of households consisting of five or more persons.
  • The BMUA had the highest proportion of households without children whilst the Rural West had the lowest proportion.
  • Both Urban regions (East and West) had a lower proportion of households with one or more adults over pension age compared to the provincial average, whilst the two Rural regions reported the highest proportions of this type of household.
  • When sub-dividing the Urban region an East-West difference was found for religious denomination of the head of household, with the Urban East comprising 60 percent Protestant and 31 percent Catholic households, compared to the Urban West which comprised 37 percent Protestant and 55 percent Catholic households.
  • The proportion of Catholic households was greater than that of Protestant households in only the two Western regions (both Urban and Rural).

Household Income and State Support

  • Those living in the BMUA and the Urban region had a higher proportion of their weekly income from wages than the provincial average whilst they derived lower than the provincial average proportion of income from self-employment.
  • Only the two Rural regions derived a higher than average proportion of their income from self-employment whilst the Urban East attained the lowest proportion.
  • The highest proportion of households receiving one or more state benefit was found in the Rural West, whilst the lowest proportion was found in the Urban East.
  • The Urban West had the highest proportion of households in receipt of Income Support (including those receiving Minimum Income Guarantee or Pension Credit) whilst the Rural East had the lowest proportion.
  • One in four households in the Urban West was in receipt of Housing Benefit, compared to approximately one in twelve in the Rural East.
  • The Urban West had the highest proportion of households in receipt of any income related benefit whilst the Rural East had the lowest proportion.
  • The Rural West had the highest proportion of households in receipt of any non-income related benefits, and the Urban East had the lowest proportion.
  • The Urban East had the highest proportion of households with mortgage protection, whilst the lowest proportion was found in the Rural West.

Housing and Tenure Costs

  • The Rural East had the lowest proportion of households in the social rented sector whilst the highest proportion of households in this sector was found in the Urban West.
  • The Rural East had the lowest proportion of households in privately rented accommodation whilst the Rural West had the highest proportion.
  • The Rural East had the highest proportion of owner-occupier households.
  • When split into three regions the Rural region was found to have a much higher than average proportion of households paying less than £20 in housing costs per week.
  • The Rural West recorded the highest regional proportion of weekly housing costs of £20 or under whilst the lowest proportion regionally was recorded in the Urban West.
  • The BMUA recorded the highest proportion of households with weekly housing costs of £80 or more.

Assets and Savings

  • Whilst a number of regional differences were evident when looking at individual types of savings and accounts, there was little regional variation in the proportions of households owning any type of account; having no account; or having direct payment accounts.
  • The Rural West recorded the lowest proportions of households with current accounts, ISAs and other bank or building society accounts, but had the highest proportion of households with Post Office accounts at almost twice the national average.
  • The Urban East recorded the lowest proportion of households with Post Office accounts.
  • The Rural East recorded the highest proportion of households owning stocks and shares (or being members of a Share Club) whilst the two western regions each recorded the lowest proportions.
  • The Rural West recorded the highest proportion of households with no accounts whatsoever whilst the Urban East recorded the lowest proportion.
  • The Rural East recorded the highest proportion of households having savings of £10,000 or more, with one in four households in this region having such savings.

Occupation and Employment

  • The Rural region had the lowest proportion of employees working full-time but had the highest proportion of self employed adults working full-time.
  • The proportion of self-employed males in the two Rural regions was found to be more than twice that of any of the other three regions.
  • The Urban region recorded the highest proportion of households with at least one permanently sick or disabled member, but recorded the lowest proportion of households with at least one retired member.
  • The Urban East reported the highest proportion of males in any type of employment whilst the Urban West reported the lowest proportion. The highest proportion of females in any type of employment was recorded in the Rural East and the lowest proportion was found in the Rural West.
  • Whilst the Rural East tied with the Rural West as the region with the lowest proportion of full-time employed females, the former region had the highest proportion of females employed on a part-time basis.
  • The lowest proportion of persons working for less than 16 hours per week was recorded in the Urban West whilst the highest proportion in this category was found to be living in the Rural East. This was due more to the proportion of females working these hours than the proportion of males.
  • Approximately one in four males living in the Rural East worked for 51 hours or more, which was more than twice the proportion of males working these hours in the Urban West.
  • The Rural region housed the highest proportion of skilled trades people, with one in four working adults in that region employed in this field.
  • The Rural East housed the lowest proportion of managers and senior officials, whilst the BMUA and the Rural West reported the highest proportions. This was largely due to the high proportion of males in the BMUA and females in the Rural West working in these occupations.
  • The BMUA also housed the highest proportion of working adults employed in professional; associate professional and technical; sales and customer services; and elementary occupations.

Consumer Durables

  • Of the three regions, the BMUA recorded the highest proportion of households with satellite dishes, cable or digital TV; central heating; home computers; and internet access.
  • The BMUA reported the lowest proportion of households with access to cars or light vans; washing machines; tumble dryers; dishwashers; and mobile phones.
  • The Rural region was recorded as having the highest proportion of households with access to cars or light vans; washing machines; tumble dryers; and dishwashers.
  • The Urban region reported the lowest proportion of households with access to a telephone; a home computer and the internet.
  • There was no regional variation found for households with access to microwaves or televisions.

Income Before and After Housing Costs

  • The Rural East can be seen to have had the highest gross and net income and the highest average weekly income both before and after housing costs.
  • The lowest regional average weekly income before housing costs was recorded in the Rural West, whilst the Urban West recorded the lowest income after housing costs.
  • The Rural East saw the greatest difference between the gross and the net weekly income whilst the Urban West had the least difference.
  • The proportion of households falling into the bottom quintile of net equivalised disposable household income before housing costs (net BHC income) was found to have been greater than the proportion of households falling into the top quintile in all of the regions, with the exception of the Rural East.
  • Three in ten households in the Rural West fell into the lowest income band, whilst less than two in ten households in the BMUA and the Rural East fell into this low income band.
  • The Urban West had the highest proportion of households falling into the bottom two quintiles for net BHC income, whilst the Rural East had the lowest proportion.
  • The Rural East had the highest proportion of households falling into the top band of net BHC income.
  • The Rural East had the lowest proportion of households earning the lowest net equivalised disposable household income after housing costs (net AHC income) in direct contrast to the Urban West and the Rural West.
  • The Rural East had the highest proportion of households earning net AHC income in the top quintile band whilst the Urban West and Rural West had the lowest proportion of households within this top band.
  • The Rural West had the highest proportion of households in all the regions falling into the bottom quintile of net AHC income.
  • Of those who earned 50 percent below the GB mean, the Rural West housed the highest proportion of the five regions.
  • The Rural East and Urban East housed the lowest proportions of individuals who earned 50 percent below the GB mean income before housing costs and also the lowest proportions of individuals who earned 60 percent below the GB median income before housing costs.
  • Those living in the Rural East and the BMUA had the lowest risk of earning 50 percent below the GB mean income before housing costs and 60 percent below the GB median income before housing costs.
  • Approximately one in five individuals living in the Urban East and Urban West were at risk of earning 50 percent below the GB mean income before housing costs.
  • Both western regions had a high risk (approximately one in four) of individuals earning 50 percent below the GB mean income after housing costs and 60 percent below the median income after housing costs.
  • The region with the lowest risk of earning 50 percent below the GB mean income after housing costs was the Rural East.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. This survey collects data on income levels, resources and financial circumstances of individuals and households for the period from April 2003 to March 2004 and was introduced for Northern Ireland in 2002/03.

2. Other government social surveys, such as the Family Expenditure Survey (FES), also collect this data, but the FRS provides much more detailed information, and brings some topics together on one survey for the first time.

3. The Urban Rural classification used was that published by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency today (10 February 2005).

4. The report is available on the Department for Social Development's website at http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/publications/urban_rural_reports.htm. Hard copies are available from the

Statistics & Research Branch (Core)
Department for Social Development
Level Four
James House
2 Cromac Avenue
Gasworks Business Park
Ormeau Road
Belfast
BT7 2JD

Telephone - 028 9081 9939;
E-mail srb@dsdni.gov.uk

5. The next edition of the Publication will be published in September 2006.

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