Londoners have a nationwide reputation for not being particularly friendly. No one looks at each other on the tube, no one nods hello when you walk by and there’s an idea that everyone is suspicious of other people and only out for themselves. In reality, Londoners’ friendliness depends a lot on where in the capital you are. Some areas have a strong sense of community, but in others nobody even knows the name of their next-door neighbours.
Now, new research has looked into the sense of community and connection that people feel across areas of England, and in each of London’s 32 boroughs. The National Conversation delved into official government data to find out how lonely people in different postcodes feel, how much they chat to and trust their neighbours, how proud they are to live where they live and how often they participate in volunteering and in civic life. Based on the statistics, each of England’s 296 local authorities were given a score out of 100.
Out of all the London boroughs, Richmond-upon-Thames scored the highest – by a mile. The royal borough scored 91/100 and ranked fifth nationally. According to the stats, only 3.3 percent of its population often or always feel lonely while 77 percent said that they feel they belong to their neighbourhood (the average across England is 62.1 percent). Ninety-two percent agreed that people from different backgrounds get on well and 70 percent said they chat to their neighbours at least monthly.
Way, way down at the bottom of the ranking, Barking and Dagenham was awarded the connection score of just 8 out of 100 and ranked dead last of all the local authorities in England. Only 58.3 percent of residents said that they feel they belong to their neighbourhood and just 21 percent agreed that many of their neighbours can be trusted (compared to 40 percent national average).
But those stats don’t tell the full story. The National Conversation said that the data it has so far is from ‘researchers measuring the country from the outside’. It wants to know how communities really feel and has launched a 10-minute survey you can fill in to help build a fuller picture of connection across England.
The survey is being conducted by the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion and co-chaired by former Conservative MP Sajid Javid and former Labour policy coordinator Jon Cruddas. The latter said that ‘government stats miss a lot of what really makes an area tick’.
‘But that’s why we have developed [the survey]’ he added. ‘To spark a conversation – because what we really want is your view on your area.’ See how your postcode did below. Do you agree?
Every London borough from most to least friendly
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Richmond-upon-Thames: 91/100
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Bromley: 62/100
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Kingston-upon-Thames: 58/100
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Westminster: 58/100
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Wandsworth: 55/100
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Camden: 54/100
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Barnet: 50/100
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Hackney: 49/100
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Southwark: 49/100
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Lambeth: 48/100
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Waltham Forest: 48/100
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Merton: 45/100
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Haringey: 43/100
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Kensington and Chelsea: 43/100
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Bexley: 41/100
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Brent: 41/100
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Islington: 41/100
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Sutton: 39/100
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Croydon: 38/100
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Greenwich: 37/100
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Lewisham: 36/100
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Harrow: 35/100
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Redbridge: 33/100
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Hammersmith and Fulham: 32/100
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Enfield: 26/100
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Ealing: 25/100
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Tower Hamlets: 23/100
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Havering: 20/100
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Hillingdon: 20/100
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Hounslow: 18/100
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Newham: 15/100
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Barking and Dagenham: 8/100
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