Cork marginally above the national average level of affluence on deprivation index

CORK is marginally above the national average level of affluence, according to the 2022 Pobal HP Deprivation Index.

The index, which is Ireland’s primary social gradient tool, found a nationwide improvement in measures such as employment and population growth, with levels largely returning to those observed in 2006.

However, persistent disadvantage remains for many communities, with several areas of Cork such as Knocknaheeny, Gurranabraher, The Glen, and Mayfield listed as very disadvantaged. Other Cork areas such as Sunday’s Well, Ballinlough, Ballincollig, and Blarney were marked very affluent.

The Deprivation Index uses data from Census 2022, analysing 10 measures of an area’s levels of disadvantage including educational attainment, employment status and the numbers living in individual households.

Almost 19,000 small areas, including 2,206 in Cork, were indexed.

The index shows that between 2016 and 2022, the population of Co Cork grew from 542,868 to 584,156, a 7.61% increase.

The unemployment rate was 6.88% for males and slightly lower for females at 6.81%. Some 8.94% of the population had primary-level education only, while 43% had a third-level education.

In contrast, in 2016 there was 11.83% unemployment for males and 10.16% for females, and 11.75% of the population had primary education only, while 36.2% had third-level education.

When compared to figures for the whole of Ireland, which had a population of 5,149,139 in the 2022 census, Cork people had lower levels of unemployment and higher levels of educational attainment.

Nationally, 10.68% of the Irish population have primary education only and 41.85% had third-level education, while the unemployment rate is 8.15% for females and 8.93% for males.

Pobal CEO Anna Shakespeare explained: “The 2022 Pobal HP Deprivation Index is created to inform national policy and ensure that resources can be properly directed to where they are most needed.”