A HUGE divide in lockdown living conditions has been exposed by the coronavirus crisis, with young people, low earners and ethnic minorities worse off, a study suggests.

People who rent properties have also seen their mental health deteriorate, according to research by the Resolution Foundation.

The think tank said that the scale of wider inequalities in living conditions – including damp, overcrowding, garden access and derelict neighbourhoods – was "striking and worrying," especially as more people will work from home in the future.

Income and ethnicity also played a major role in the quality of household living conditions, said the report.

One in five children from a low-income household has spent lockdown in an overcrowded home, compared with 3 per cent of children in higher-income households, according to the research.

The inequalities in living conditions have had a material effect on people's wellbeing during the crisis, including their mental health, said the think tank.

Fahmida Rahman, research and policy analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said: "Millions of children and young adults have found themselves spending far more of their time in overcrowded homes with no garden access.

"These problems have been particularly acute for low-income and black, Asian and minority-ethnic households, who experience the worst living conditions of all.

"While many housing quality issues such as damp have improved over time, others – such as overcrowding – have actually got worse. 

"This reflects decades of failure to build more homes and uphold decent standards, particularly in private rented accommodation."

Alex Beer of the Nuffield Foundation, which funded the research, said: "This report provides further evidence that Covid-19 is exacerbating many existing inequalities, with younger people, those on low incomes and people from minority-ethnic groups disproportionately affected."