Friends and neighbors in Britain depends on where you live

People in London are less likely to trust their neighbors than in any other part of Britain, research published Thursday reveals.

Just under 56 percent of people in Britain's capital said in a survey published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) that they felt people in their neighbourhood could be trusted, compared to Scotland which had the highest trust level of over 73 percent.

London also had the lowest score, 64.72 percent, of people who felt their neighbors would be willing to help them.In Northern Ireland, which had the highest score, four out of five people thought their neighbors would help them.

London again had the lowest score in Britain when people were asked if they felt they "belonged" in their neighborhoods. The score in the capital at just over 58 percent compared to Northern Ireland, where almost three quarters felt they belonged.

More than 70 percent of people in all parts of Britain, including London, said they would feel safe walking after dark in their communities.

A spokeswoman for ONS said on Thursday: "Our research highlights that personal characteristics such as age, ethnicity and socio-economic status all have a role in explaining the differences in how people feel about their neighborhoods across the UK, in particular in the trust people have in others in their neighborhood.

"People living in rural areas were more likely to think that people in their neighborhood can be trusted than people living in urban areas (78 percent compared with 61 percent).

"Trust in others was the highest amongst the retired (79 percent) and the self-employed (70 percent) but lowest among the unemployed (43 percent), people with long-term sickness or disabilities (52 percent), full-time students (52 percent) and people on maternity leave or looking after family (56 percent)."

ONS said people in higher managerial occupations were more likely to trust people in their neighborhood (73 percent) than people in routine occupations (54 percent).

The ONS spokeswoman added: "How people feel about their neighborhood can shape local areas, for example, by generating very trusting communities, and can affect the behavior of people living in these neighborhoods. For the UK as a whole, the majority of people felt positively about their neighbourhood."

Around 45.7 million, or 82 percent of the people in England and Wales live in urban areas and the remaining 18 percent (10.3 million people) live in rural areas. Endit