Are there Ethnic Enclaves/Ghettos in English Cities?

Abstract

The residential segregation of ethnic groups in urban areas remains an issue of importance for policy-making in multicultural societies, such as England's, with levels of segregation frequently linked to questions of social exclusion and equal treatment. But how segregated are ethnic groups in England? Most studies answer this question using single indices which address one aspect only of a multidimensional concept. In this paper, an alternative approach is used which identifies residential area types according to the degree of ethnic mixing; we evaluate their relative importance in 18 English cities in the light of Boal and Peach's arguments regarding the processes and patterns involved in segregation. We find little evidence of significant segregation of Black ethnic groups, but more with regard to Asian groups-especially outside London.