The Distribution of New Commonwealth Immigrants in the London Borough of Ealing, 1961-66

The spatial pattern of New Commonwealth immigrants has received scant attention at the micro-scale of urban analysis. This paper analyses the temporal and spatial changes in the distribution of immigrants that occurred in the intercensal period 1961-66. The data used are recorded at the Enumeration District level; in order to overcome the inaccuracies of these data, these statistical units are grouped together to form larger units for detailed examination. To examine the observed distributions, several techniques measuring spatial change are used, in particular a modified version of the contiguity ratio. Between 1961 and 1966 the immigrant population of the London Borough of Ealing increased by 116.58 per cent from 7743 to 16770 and over this period its distribution became increasingly clustered and concentrated. There has been a 'thickening' of established clusters of immigrant settlement especially at Southall and central Ealing. Further, a new nucleus of immigrant concentration has emerged in the Borough's suburban belt. Some of these clusters have remained remarkably stable in their areal extent but others in the older residential areas of Acton have displayed considerable instability in this respect. The evidence presented in this paper suggests that the trends in immigrant distribution in this borough are towards increasing rather than decreasing spatial segregation from the host population.