§ Lynne JonesTo ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his definition is of 'urban deprived' for the purpose of distribution of the Post Office Fund for Urban Deprived Areas; and if he will make a statement. [90043]
§ Mr. McNultyFor the purpose of distribution of the Deprived Urban Post Office Fund, an urban area is a ward in a community of over 10,000 people, while a deprived area is a ward in the 20 per cent. most deprived wards in England, as measured by the indices of Deprivation 2000.
The Indices of Deprivation 2000 are measures of deprivation for every ward and local authority area in England. They combine a number of indicators which cover a range of domains (Income, Employment, Health Deprivation and Disability, Education, Skills and Training, Housing and Geographical Access to Services) into a single deprivation score for each area.
The Deprived Urban Post Office Fund is only available to sub-post offices located in the 20 per cent. most deprived urban wards, with priority given to those located in the 10 per cent. most deprived urban wards.