YOU have less chance of escaping poverty in West Somerset than anywhere else in England, a government report released today has revealed.

West Somerset was rated the worst district or borough in the entire country in the government's social mobility index, which measures the likelihood of children from deprived backgrounds succeeding in getting a good education and good job.

The social mobility index looks at children who qualify for free school meals, and then ranked the local authority on access to good pre-schools, primary school, secondary schools and higher education, and also their chance of getting a well-paid job or buy their own home.

West Somerset came close to the bottom in a number of the categories, meaning it finished 324th out of 324 on the overall score.

West Somerset's MP Ian Liddell-Grainger said he was not shocked by the figures.

"West Somerset has a number of factors which contribute to figures such as these. We have the one of the oldest populations in the country, transport is a big problem and our main resources are based around the coastal town of Minehead. People often move to Bridgwater or Taunton in order to find well-paid work," Mr Liddell-Grainger said.

"We have always been low on these sorts of indices and it is a challenge we continue to strive to change."

West Somerset Labour secretary Andy Lewis said one of the major factors limiting social mobility in West Somerset is the lack of decently-paid jobs.

West Somerset Labour secretary Andy Lewis said: “The social mobility index shows yet again that too many adults in our district do not receive the living wage and that high property prices make life difficult for families. This highlights the importance of attracting high quality employment and ensuring that there is affordable housing.

“The report suggests that our schools are doing reasonably well. But the findings about experiences in children’s early years are disturbing. The commission looked at provision of nurseries, and children’s development at the age of five. West Somerset came 323rd out of 324 areas.

“Labour’s Sure Start programme has been run down by the Tories locally and nationally. We hope policy makers at Somerset County Council and elsewhere will now see the importance of giving children in the pre-school years the chances they need.”

Bizarrely despite these results West Somerset was also ranked the fourth happiest region in a study by the Office for National Statistics last summer.