19 August 2005
Internet-based information about public services could encourage social exclusion and segregation, research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has found.
The charity is warning that the ability to access information, such as the performance of local schools or crime statistics, could lead to social fragmentation as web-literate people increasingly conduct research before choosing where to live.
The foundation, which published its study on August 17, says the growing availability of information claiming to capture the social characteristics of a neighbourhood is threatening the government's efforts to create more mixed communities. The drive to foster social cohesion is suffering as the prosperous gravitate towards areas populated by others they regard as desirable neighbours.
Professor Roger Burrows, who led a joint team of researchers from York and Durham universities, said the project had come up with some 'worrying' findings. 'We should recognise the potential implications for disadvantaged neighbourhoods and the people who live in them.'
PFaug2005
