Multiple disadvantage in Scotland

Aim

We wanted to find out about the extent of multiple disadvantages in Scotland. We identified a minority of households that experience four or more indicators of disadvantage, including low income, overcrowding, mental health problems and living in a deprived neighbourhood.  We compared rates of multiple disadvantage across local areas and the characteristics of households most at risk.

Findings

• 24,000 families with children (4 per cent) experience multiple disadvantage.
• Unmarried households with children are six times more likely to be severely disadvantaged than married households.
• As to be expected, some forms of disadvantage are more prevalent for particular life stages. Families have higher rates of overcrowding, working age adults have higher rates of unemployment and pensioner households are worse-off health wise.
• Glasgow is the worst affected area with 1 in 10 families with children severely disadvantaged.
• South Lanarkshire had the second highest rate of families with children with four or more disadvantages.
• The local area with the highest proportion of households without any disadvantages was Edinburgh
• Other areas with high proportions of households without any disadvantages were the Highlands, Grampian and Central.

Method

We conducted a secondary analysis of the data from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS), a large-scale survey of the characteristics, attitudes and behaviour of Scottish households and individuals on a range of issues, including social justice, housing and transport.

Read the report