A few northern towns make rich list
Updated on 24 August 2007
It's no surprise that the south features heavily in a new posh postcode rich list, but the north has slipped in a few entries too.
The latest Barclays wealth survey looks at customers' current account data to give a snapshot of Britain's wealthiest areas.
It reveals that the annual household income in one of London's poshest postcodes has broken through the £100,000 barrier for the first time.
With all the talk of city bonuses and million pound mansions in Kensington, you could be forgiven for being surprised the 100k mark hadn't already been passed.
But when you consider that most London boroughs are a mix of very low income, middle income and high income households, it begins to dawn how much some households are actually bringing in - a lot more than £100k it's fair to say.
London's Kensington and Chelsea was the only area to come in over the £100k mark. But the list went on to mention 49 of the richest areas in England.
Rich list top five
1. London - Kensington and Chelsea: £101,600 (7 per cent annual change)
2. London - City of London/Westminster: £81,425 (5 per cent annual change)
3. London - Hampstead and Highgate: £77,500 (6 per cent annual change)
4. South East - Beaconsfield: £74,375 (7 per cent annual change)
5. London - Richmond Park: £71,925 (5 per cent annual change)
Bret Packard, managing director of Barclays Premier Banking, said: "No doubt the influx of high earners not just from the UK but from overseas has had a positive impact on average incomes.
"However, high incomes are no longer unusual in the UK. There are now one million individuals in the UK earning over £100,000 a year."
The biggest annual percentage changes were not, however, found in the big smoke. The Cotswolds in the South West had the biggest annual increase of average household income - up by nine per cent on last year.
The Cotswolds have been a relatively affluent area for some time, but it's not the traditional farming communities who are responsible for the latest surge.
Biggest annual percentage change
- South East - Wealden: £54,825 (8 per cent annual change)
- South East - Mole Valley: £71,500 (8 per cent annual change)
- South West - Cotswold: £60,800 (9 per cent annual change)
The recent increase is probably down to celebrity incomers like supermodel Kate Moss and Blur bassist-turned-cheesemaker Alex James.
But it wasn't all southern postcodes in the money bags list. According to the survey 10 per cent (five out of 50) of the rich list were in the north.
Tatton slipped in at 13th richest area, with an average income of £62,000.
Macclesfield and Altrincham also appeared, albeit near the bottom, of the list. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, given it's the land of footballers' wives and fancy boutiques.
The only indisputably northern town to hit the list was Sheffield. Hallam appeared at number 33, a healthy six per cent richer than last year.
Northern anomalies
- North West - Tatton: £62,350 (4 per cent annual change)
- Yorkshire - Sheffield, Hallam: £56,400 (6 per cent annual change)
- North West - Altrincham and Sale West: £56,075 (7 per cent annual change)
- North West - Macclesfield: 55,200 (5 per cent annual change)
- East Midlands - West Derbyshire: 54,700 (per cent annual change)
The list comes days after another survey revealed Britons, on average, now owe more than we make; our debt is, per person, now greater than our GDP.
