POCKETS of poverty in York have left the city with an infant mortality rate higher than that of Leeds and more than double that in neighbouring Ryedale and Selby, according to city MP Hugh Bayley.

The figures, for deaths up to the age of 12 months, have prompted Mr Bayley to call for more work to be done by agencies working together to tackle poverty and the causes of ill health.

The effect of income levels on health is highlighted by Professor Mark Baker, director of public health for North Yorkshire Health Authority, in a report due to be presented to health authority members today, which identifies particularly vulnerable groups.

Mr Bayley said: "North Yorkshire generally is a prosperous area and York generally is a prosperous city. But there are areas of York, like Clifton North, parts of Tang Hall and parts of Chapelfields, where there are patches of poverty which you don't find in country towns around North Yorkshire. York is a good and healthy place to live but for some poorer communities there are serious problems.

''In relation to infant mortality I think the single most important thing is better ante-natal care - better classes for mums-to-be and work on teenage pregnancies to try to reduce the rate.

"In relation to other indicators, it is the same patches of York that have a high infant mortality rate that have a high death rate from coronary heart disease and a high rate from lung cancer.

"It's something that I have talked about in the past with the health authority and I would like to see all the agencies in York adopt a poverty strategy.

Professor Baker said: "We need to understand that there are many different populations in North Yorkshire, some of whom are excluded and have poorer health than the majority of the population because their health improvement is failing to keep pace with the general population.

''The common features of many of these groups are that they are numerically small and very sparsely distributed across North Yorkshire.

"This can have the effect of rendering them almost invisible and therefore increasing the likelihood of exclusion.

"We need to focus our attention on these people and develop firm actions which will help address these health inequalities.

"Meanwhile, the health authority is now working with the City of York Council to apply for the Sure Start scheme which could plough up to £750,000 into health and education provision for pregnant women, children up to three years old and parents.

It is the first time the authority has been eligible for the scheme, which in its fifth wave is targeting affluent areas with pockets of deprivation.

Social services, the education authority and the health authority will be working together on the scheme.

Updated: 09:22 Monday, September 17, 2001