Parallel lives? Ethnic segregation in schools andneighbourhoods

We provide evidence on the extent of ethnic segregation experienced bychildren across secondary schools and neighbourhoods (wards). Using 2001Schools Census and Population Census data we employ the indices ofdissimilarity and isolation and compare patterns of segregation across nineethnic groups, and across Local Education Authorities in England. Looking atboth schools and neighbourhoods, we find high levels of segregation for thedifferent groups, along with considerable variation across England. We findconsistently higher segregation for South Asian pupils than for Black pupils.For most ethnic groups children are more segregated at school than in theirneighbourhood. We analyse the relative degree of segregation and show thathigh population density is associated with high relative school segregation.