IT IS alarming to hear that 5,000 children in Oxford are living in poverty, according to health bosses.

And the Leys, Littlemore, Rose Hill and Barton have been identified by city council officers as areas experiencing “multiple levels of deprivation”.

Labour MP for Oxford East Andrew Smith has warned that Oxford could become “a tale of two cities” due to changes to tax credits in the new welfare bill, and the rising cost of housing and rents.

The Government, meanwhile, says it intends to make people better off by increasing the income tax personal allowance to £11,000.

The stark findings in the report presented to the city council about inequalities between different parts of Oxford are worrying.

But it is perhaps unhelpful to use emotive rhetoric when civic leaders, politicians and church leaders are trying to find a way to ensure that some sections of society are not experiencing extreme poverty.

Families living in Rose Hill, Barton or Cutteslowe in North Oxford don’t want to be labelled – if they are experiencing difficulties they want easy access to help from a number of different quarters.

But with government cuts affecting local government services, including children’s centres, there will be no quick fix.

What is clear is that Oxford urgently needs more affordable housing.