The Relationship between Physical Segregation and Social Marginalisation in the Urban Environment

This paper posits a relationship between the urban location of immigrant quarters and the likelihood that the inhabitants of such areas will improve themselves economically. The application of space syntax methods to this research, coupled with the use of primary census data, the Charles Booth maps of Poverty in 19th century London and historical maps of London, Manchester and Leeds, has enabled analysis of street scale data, to study the socio-economic and spatial structure of areas frequently perceived as ‘ghettos’. This paper suggests that some urban areas are especially prone to settlement by impoverished immigrants, due to characteristics that make such areas first, tend to be economically unsuccessful due to their spatial segregation and second, less attractive to those who have the means to move elsewhere. It concludes that such areas are not so much defined by their immigrant constituents, but by their long-standing inhabitants that cannot move elsewhere. Analysis of the relationship between poverty and spatial segregation in such areas, suggests a strong relationship between the physical separation of poverty areas from the economic life of the city, and the lack of potential for the economically marginalized to ultimately integrate into society. Bibliographic Reference: Vaughan, L. 2005, "The relationship between physical segregation and social marginalisation in the urban environment", World Architecture. Special issue on space syntax, forthcoming.