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COVERAGE ... Falinge tops the stats in the national papers
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Benefits culture capital
by Alice McKeegan19/ 3/2008
ROCHDALE has been dubbed ‘the scrounge capital of the UK’ after it was revealed that the Falinge area has the highest concentration of benefit claimants in the country.
New figures have revealed that 820 out of 1,074 working-age adults in Falinge and College Bank are unemployed and claiming out-of-work benefits.
This works out at 76.4 per cent of the population and means that the Falinge and Central Rochdale ward tops the national league table.
The Balderstone and Kirkholt district also appears on the list. The area takes 27th place,. with 635 out of 1,178 people claiming benefits - 53.9 per cent of the adult population.
Councillor Dale Mulgrew accepted that the figures were ‘grim reading’ but said that recent coverage of the issue in the tabloids, including The Sun and The News of the World, was painting a distorted view of the facts.
He said: "It’s not as simple as saying that Rochdale is the scrounge capital of the UK and sensationalistic headlines will not help the situation.
"It’s a fact that Rochdale is a deprived area and many people in the borough have poor health. These are the harsh realities facing people living in some areas of Rochdale.
"However, not all cases are genuine and some people are playing the system. Perhaps we do need to force them back into work."
The leader of the council, Councillor Alan Taylor, said that the authority was working hard to provide more job opportunities and tackle deprivation.
He hopes that the new multi-million pound Kingsway Business Park will help to kick-start the regeneration process.
He said: "Deprivation affects many areas of the borough and there are hotspots of acute deprivation. We’re working hard to tackle the causes as well as the effects.
"There is a lot of change going on which is creating new employment opportunities. What we are trying to do is maximise these opportunities for local people by making sure that our residents have the qualifications and skills needed to be able to fill new job vacancies as they arise.
"In central Rochdale and Falinge there is a significant proportion of social housing and many flats above shops as well as sheltered accommodation.
"There’s a significant concentration of deprived people within a relatively small geographical area close to the town centre.There also tends to be a transient population as people move out of deprivation we see them move to other areas."
Roger Ellis, the chief executive of the council, recognised that Rochdale was facing a long-term problem, but the council was making significant investments to improve education opportunities for young people.
He added: "Language problems have been highlighted as something that often presents peoples with a barrier so we’re helping people learn English through the ESOL programme.
"We have a scheme called In2Work which is specifically for people on incapacity or sickness related benefits. It’s about getting them back into employment or helping them to set up their own business.
"We have ambitious plans for major physical and social regeneration in Rochdale and we’re determined that some of the improvements we’re making now will have a significant effect on people’s lives."
Rochdale MP Paul Rowen, the Lib Dem shadow minister for work and pensions, said: "There is a direct link between morbidity rates and benefit claims.
"It is clear that people need help and support to get back to work. I am currently lobbying for a change in the benefits system to make it more attractive for people to work and receive positive help and support to get back to work.
"I am keen to ensure that local people take advantage of opportunities like Kingsway Business Park to find work. These headlines are not helpful though and it is only by tackling the problems that we can make a difference."
Click on the video window for Channel M's report ...
Most recent 2 of 36 user comments
I'm aware some people abuse the system.
I haven't defended every person on benefits; all I was saying was that not everybody abuses the system and those that aren't abusing the system aren't getting enough money to get by on.
2/04/2008 at 01:38
Got an opinion you want to share?Do you think Rochdale is unfairly portrayed in the national media?
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