These are the most deprived areas of Luton according to the latest census results

The most deprived areas of Luton have been revealed in the latest 2021 census results.

The figures come as part of a more detailed set of results from the snapshot of England and Wales captured in March last year.

But the good news is the figures show Luton’s level of deprivation has dropped in the past 10 years.

As part of the 2021 census, households in England and Wales were classified in terms of four different "dimensions of deprivation", which are based on certain characteristics.

The first is where any member of a household, who is not a full-time student, is either unemployed or long-term sick, and the second covers households where no person has at least five or more GCSE passes or equivalent qualifications, and no 16 to 18-year-olds at the home are full-time students.

The third dimension is where any person in the household has general health that is “bad” or “very bad” or has a long-term health problem, and the fourth where the household’s accommodation is either overcrowded or is in a shared dwelling, or has no central heating.

Office for National Statistics data show 58.7% of households in Luton were deprived in at least one of these "dimensions" when the most recent census was carried out.

It meant the area stood above the average across England and Wales​, of 51.7%. ​However, it represented a drop from 64.1% at the time of the last census in 2011.

A further breakdown reveals which of the area's 22 neighbourhoods were most affected by deprivation last year.

In Luton, the five areas with the highest deprivation rates were:

> Central Luton – 71.9% of households here were deprived in at least one dimension at the time of the 2021 census, though no comparative data was available for 2011

> Bury Park – 71.4%, falling from 79.9% in 2011

> Farley Hill and Stockwood Park – 66.1%, a drop from 70% in 2011

> Kingsway – 66%, down from 77.5% in 2011

> Marsh Farm – 65.3%, down from 70.9% in 2011

By contrast, the neighbourhood with the lowest level of deprivation was Barnfield, at 44.9% of households.

The ONS said deprivation is a "complex topic", adding that more detailed information would come in future releases.