AN area of Worcester has been named as one of the most deprived areas of England in a Government report.

The Warndon area of the city, to the east of Cranham Drive, has been ranked within the top 4 per cent of deprived areas nationally.

The English Indices of Deprivation 2004 report contains seven different aspects of deprivation; income, employment, health and disability, education, skills and training, barriers to housing and services, living environment, and crime.

Housing

Warndon fell within the top 10 per cent in five out of the seven categories, leaving it within the top 4 per cent nationally overall.

The area is ranked as 1,250th out of 32,482 areas of England.

Members of Worcestershire County Council's Environment Scrutiny Panel were due to discuss the report at a meeting today.

Overall, Worcestershire is ranked 116th out of the 149 county and unitary authority council in England, where 1 is the most deprived.

The report states, in Worcestershire, the aspects of deprivation that feature most are housing, access to services and some areas of education.

The south-west part of Gorse Hill also falls within the top 10 per cent of most deprived areas, along with the Rifle Range estate and Horsefair, in Kidderminster.

At time of going to press, none of the areas' councillors was available for comment.

Warndon... not all that bad

RESIDENTS in Warndon say they are surprised by the findings of a Government report that states that the area is one of the most deprived in England.

Local people say that the area is no worse than many other areas of Worcester and beyond, and that the main problems lie with gangs of youths hanging around on street corners.

"I'm surprised that it has been ranked so high," said Alfreda Worley, who has lived in the area for more than 40 years. "I don't think it is deprived but there definitely isn't enough for young people round here.

"Something needs to be done to stop them hanging around, perhaps somewhere where they can go and learn something or play so they leave the shops and the people alone."

Unemployment and crime are some of the main concerns for residents in Warndon - much of which is caused by the increasing drugs culture.

Problem

"There is quite a big drugs problem around here," said Penrith Close resident Simon Wallin. "I think that drags the area down and leads to quite a few people being unemployed and higher crime.

"But I've lived in worse places, such as in areas of Manchester."

Rodborough Drive resident Eleanor Miles said: "There definitely are not enough facilities for kids round here. They need a community centre or something to keep them occupied.

"There are quite a lot of people out of work up here and a high number of teenage mums."

Residents said they wanted to see more facilities for young people and more police presence to deter people from committing crimes.