To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Torbay of 31 January 2008, Official Report, column 592W, on the Working Neighbourhoods Fund (WNF), how the criteria for WNF differs from the criteria previously used to allocate Deprived Areas Fund. (189403)

Following Spending Review 2004 the Deprived Areas Fund (DAF) was allocated to wards based on benefit claim rates. The following wards attracted DAF allocations:

Any ward with a benefit claim rate of 25 per cent. or above; and

Any ward in the 10 local authorities with the lowest employment rates with a benefit claim rate of 20 to 25 per cent.

Three criteria were used to determine eligibility for the Working Neighbourhoods Fund (WNF):

Any authority that has 20 per cent. or more of its lower super output areas (LSOAs) in the most deprived decile on the employment domain; or

Any authority that has 20 per cent. or more of its lower super output areas (LSOAs) in the most deprived decile on the overall IMD; or

Any authority that ranks among the top 40 districts on an equally weighted measure of key benefit claim rate and employment rate.

Local authorities were only required to meet one of the above criteria to qualify for the fund.