The latest official government statistics released today reveal that Jaywick remains the most deprived area of England.

East Anglian Daily Times: The beach at Jaywick, which has been classed as England's most deprived place. Photo: Nick Ansell/PA WireThe beach at Jaywick, which has been classed as England's most deprived place. Photo: Nick Ansell/PA Wire

The village, west of Clacton, came bottom in the league table the last time the data was published in 2010.

Based on a range of measures, including income, education level and health, the figures published by the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) are mostly based on information from 2012/13.

The deprivation figures actually apply to two specific areas of Jaywick, the Brooklands and Grasslands estates to the west of the village.

Jaywick ranked second worst for employment, 16th worst for crime, fifth worst for education levels, but worst overall.

Gill Elkins, secretary of the Jaywick Forum, said: “It is disappointing but I half expected it, especially when you look at when the data is taken from.

“A lot of the figures come from before much of the work which is taking place down here. It is looking a lot better.

“I am hopeful Jaywick won’t be at the bottom in five years’ time when the next figures come out.

“There is a silver lining because the government can’t ignore us any more. They did last time because of the recession, but I am confident things are improving.

“A lot of hard work has gone into the area from Tendring District and Essex County councils in bringing things up to a reasonable standard, especially on the infrastructure side of things.

“Because we have been in this position for the last five years anyway it’s going to be a case of people thinking ‘Oh well, what has changed?’ We just get on it with it.”

Clacton MP Douglas Carswell said Jaywick would continue to spiral without action from local and central government.

He said: “People in Jaywick have been let down by big government and official planning restrictions that have prevented any significant new housing investment for 40 years.

“Until planning rules are liberalised and capital can be invested in Jaywick the downward spiral will continue.”

Mr Carswell said he had lobbied government and the council to introduce minimum housing standards for people on benefits.

The Ukip MP added: “Thanks to government policy we are subsidising squalor.”

Tendring District Council has launched a number of initiatives in the area, such as buying up empty plots of land to build better quality housing in a bid to attract more private investment. Essex County Council has also begun a roads resurfacing scheme in Brooklands.

The Government said the report was a snapshot based on information gathered over the 2012/13 financial year and insisted differences between areas may be very small.

A DCLG spokesman said: “We will ensure every part of Britain benefits from a growing economy and everyone who works hard gets the opportunities they need to succeed.

“The most recent statistics show that the proportion of individuals with relative low income is now at the lowest level since the mid-1980s and we have near record levels of employment.

“Furthermore, councils facing the highest demand for services continue to receive more funding and have higher spending power than less deprived authorities.”