Homeownership, Poverty and Educational Achievement: School Effects as Neighbourhood Effects

Abstract

One of the significant characteristics of many poor neighbourhoods is that the schools which serve them are characterised by poor performance in terms of attainment and other measures. This feature is seen as critical in the reinforcement of disadvantage, its transmission between generations, and as a barrier to social integration. Government policies in the UK have increasingly targeted improved school standards and performance, while other policies on urban regeneration and housing may interact with this issue. This paper examines the particular role of homeownership tenure alongside the other factors (notably poverty) which affect school attainment. After reviewing existing literature it presents new analyses of attainment based on linked pupil, school and small area-level datasets for selected areas in both England and Scotland. This provides some evidence to support the contention that homeownership has an additional effect on school attainment, beyond that explained by poverty and other associated variables, although there is some uncertainty about how separable these effects are at school or neighbourhood levels. It also points out the significant role of changing tenure mix in housing regeneration in transforming the overall profile of neighbourhoods and schools.

Keywords:

• Homeownership
• education
• neighbourhood

Notes

¹ Analyses of the Scottish Household Survey data for 1999/00 show that 85.7 per cent of people in the highest social class in Scotland are homeowners compared to only 46.1 per cent in the lowest social class (2001/02 data are similar).

² The variables included vary slightly at different geographical levels according to data availability; for example, IMD low income is available at ward level but not at COA level

³ There are a number of differences between the Scottish and English datasets. Scottish data are for 2003/04 (two years later); Scottish qualifications are not precisely comparable with the English; Scottish data supplied have been subject to a degree of random ‘record-swapping’ in respect of the neighbourhood and school link codes; neighbourhood is based on Datazone, rather than a combination of Output Areas and wards as in the English data; categories of special educational need used in Scotland are different; Scottish schools' budgets are based on FTE teacher numbers; Scottish attainment scores continuous, numbers of subjects passed at threshold levels.