Local Needs Analysis

The Local Needs Analysis (LNA) tool, found under Needs Analysis in the navigation menu, supports bid work by identifying the specific needs of an area before a bid is submitted. It is based on government Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) data.

Figure 1 The Needs Analysis search

Enter a postcode or a Lower Layer Super Output Area (LSOA) code, then select Search.

Reading the Results

Figure 2 Needs Analysis results for an example postcode

The results are made up of:

• Published Year: the edition of the IMD data being shown.
• Area summary: a map, the area name, its LSOA name and code, and its overall IMD rank. A rank of 1 is the most deprived area, and the highest number (33,755 in England) is the least deprived. A row of ten squares shows the area's decile, for example Bottom 40%.
• Domain chart: the area's rank across each IMD domain, side by side.
• Domain tiles: one tile per domain (Income, Employment, Education, Skills and Training, Health Deprivation and Disability, Crime, Barriers to Housing and Services, and Living Environment). Fewer filled squares, in red or orange, show greater deprivation. A full row in green shows the area is among the least deprived for that domain.
• Domain: the area of need the metric addresses.
• Metric: the recommended IES metric.
• Reason: why the metric would make a difference in this area.
• Rating: a score from 1 (least or no impact) to 5 (most impact).

Select the (i) icon on the area summary for an explanation of the Index of Multiple Deprivation, what it is used for and its impact.

Figure 3 The Index of Multiple Deprivation explainer

Select any domain tile to open a panel with more detail on that domain, including its rank, where it sits nationally, what the domain measures, and a link to the government source data. Sub-domain tiles, such as Children and Young People, Adult Skills and Geographical Barriers, appear underneath the main domains.

Figure 4 Domain detail for Crime, opened from its tile

Recommended Metrics

Figure 5 Recommended IES metrics, scored for the area

Further down, the tool recommends IES metrics likely to have the most impact in the area, based on the domains where need is greatest. Recommendations are produced by Thrive's Local Needs scoring system. For each, the table shows: