The introduction to an ALevel geography coursework NEA investigating whether social factors are the main cause of deprivation in a town in South East England. This introduction received full marks and the whole investigation was awarded an A.
1.1 Literary Review
Uk Poverty: Causes, Costs and Solutions
Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 20161
This article begins by generalising poverty as the situation where people are ‘not able to heat
[their] home, pay [their] rent, or buy essentials for [their] children’ and stating that poverty not
only limits individuals ability to purchase the bare necessities of life in modern society but also
has an impact on people emotionally, leading to increased stress levels and potentially
depression. It is also explained that poverty is caused by a lack of resources, the most prevalent
of which being income, and by the ever increasing prices of basic needs. The journal states some
key statistics surrounding poverty, including how 13.5 million people in the UK live in poverty –
3.9 million of which are children – and how 39% of people in poverty live in a family where at
least one person is disabled. In addition to this, the article goes into depth about the main
causes of poverty – of course noting that the process of falling below the poverty line is complex
and usually due to multiple reasons rather than just a single causation. The five most common
causes of poverty, as mentioned in the article, are summarised below:
Firms reply on low-paid insecure workers to keep their costs low and are able to continue offering these low wages as there is
a plentiful supply of potential workers. Discrimination and home address can also trap people in low paying positions.
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It is common for individuals to,ffi
td
ffi
k Lacking basic skills is often
have a strained relationship with thought of as simply being
their family due to mental health unable to read or write,
problems, violence, substance however in the 21st century
abuse or involvement with crime. basic skills also include digital
Stable and secure families are skills. This negatively impacts
vital for children especially as the older generations
boys and young men may react to especially, not only making it
a negative home life with bad harder to participate in society
behaviour and girls and young but also limiting people’s
women are at a higher risk of chances of moving up the
Figure 1.1a
suffering from mental health corporate ladder
problems or violent relationships.
The welfare system can create a range of
issues for individuals and families in
poverty, with long wait times and
confusing or unclear regulations. In some
cases, the money received from the
government does not allow the person to
escape or avoid poverty due to it being too
low. People on the benefits system also
find it hard to financially plan for the
future as there is no certainty the amount
they receive will stay the same or if they
1
https://www.jrf.org.uk/cost-of-living/uk-poverty-causes-costs-and-solutions will even qualify for it in a few years time.
, Factors of deprivation
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, 2019 2
This technical report begins by explaining how the Index of Multiple Deprivation is a measure of
deprivation that combines 7 domains to create an overall picture – these domains can be seen in
Figure 1.1b below. These domains are referred to as ‘a basket of indicators’ as each domain
contains a range of other
The report also goes into depth about how the domains do not play an equal role in constructing
the IMD – with some domains such as Income and Employment having a 22.5% weight each but
Crime and Living Environment only weighing 9.3% each. This ensures that the issues that create
greater deprivation are given greater importance to the overall index, and that the index relates to
the majority of people who use it.
People in poverty can only afford the cheapest
Barriers to housing of housing, this can often mean homes are
unsafe, with mould or other issues that can
have negative impacts of peoples health
Figure 1.1b
Poor health in children leads to
Health
them having time off of school
with could reduce their chances
of doing well in school
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