UK's Poor hit hardest by COVID-19 pandemic

People in deprived areas have been hit harder by coronavirus. Oli Scarff/AFP

Coronavirus-related deaths in poorer areas of the UK are more than double those in more affluent parts of the country, official government figures reveal.

Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak it has been widely claimed that the greater burden has been on people from more modest backgrounds in Britain. Under lockdown it has been said that the wealthier have more options to work at home than shop staff, tradesmen or clearly nurses on the front line.

Now this has been backed up by a new publication from the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS), which shows deaths from COVID-19, region by region and level of deprivation from the 1st March to the 17th April, this year.

The ONS states that the death rate involving COVID-19 in the most deprived areas of England was 55.1 deaths per 100,000 people compared with 25.3 deaths per 100,000 in the least deprived areas. Similarly in Wales the worst off areas had a death rate of 44.6 per 100,000 people, while richer parts of the country had a rate of 23.2 deaths per 100,000.

Unsurprisingly it also revealed that London had the highest mortality rate with 85.7 deaths per 100,000 people who had suffered from COVID-19.

Statistics back up the claims that more affluent areas have had fewer deaths. Office for National Statistics

"By mid-April, the region with the highest proportion of deaths involving COVID-19 was London with the virus being involved in more than four in 10 deaths since the start of March. In contrast, the region with the lowest proportion of COVID-19 deaths was the South West, which saw just over one in 10 deaths involving coronavirus," said Nick Stripe, head of Health Analysis at the ONS.

"People living in more deprived areas have experienced COVID-19 mortality rates more than double those living in less deprived areas. General mortality rates are normally higher in more deprived areas, but so far COVID-19 appears to be taking them higher still."

It is often more difficult to self-isolate for people in lower paid jobs. AP

Deprivation in regions is measured by the ONS taking in factors like income, employment, health, education and crime. The figures are stark with the death rates involving coronavirus 118 percent higher in the poorest areas than the least deprived areas of England.

There has been a focus in the UK on the plight of nurses who are treating coronavirus patients at times without the correct personal protective equipment (PPE).