A survey has revealed that many people across Bexley and Dartford feel their area has “not improved” since the Levelling Up scheme.

It comes after a YouGov survey found that out of 361 local authorities in the UK, only four areas have improved.

The £4.8 billion fund is designed to improve town centre and high street regeneration, transport projects, and cultural and heritage assets.

Residents across Bexley and Dartford revealed that their area has “not improved” following the scheme.

44 per cent of people in Bexley saw a decline, 36 per cent said it stayed the same and just 12 per cent revealed it had improved.

It was a similar outcome in Dartford with 41 per cent seeing a decline, and 34 per cent said it stayed the same.

A total of 15 per cent said their area had improved.

While in 215 authorities the most common opinion is that the local area has stayed about the same, suggests the survey.

A total of 142 council areas people tend to believe that their local area has generally declined.

The data suggests that there is “little optimism or positivity” about local areas among the very people the Levelling Up fund was designed to benefit.

The strongest sense of decline appears in areas such as Stoke-on-Trent (49 per cent), Havering (48 per cent), Thurrock (48 per cent) and Rotherham (47 per cent).