The Poverty and Social Exclusion UK (PSE-UK) Survey is the largest and most comprehensive survey of its kind ever carried out in the UK. The UK study has three main objectives: To improve the measurement of poverty, deprivation, social exclusion and standard of living; to assess changes in poverty and social exclusion in the UK; and to conduct policy-relevant analyses of poverty and social exclusion.

The survey makes it possible to compare estimates of poverty using a range of different measures. It also assesses levels of social exclusion, measured across multiple domains or areas of people’s lives. It is the first to look across all these domains simultaneously and so make it possible to examine exclusion in a truly multi-dimensional way.

The report presents an initial analysis of poverty and social exclusion in rural and urban areas of Scotland. It highlights similarities and differences, looking at broad rural/urban differences and at differences within the rural category between remote and accessible areas. It looks at poverty or material disadvantage but also presents a broader analysis across the range of social exclusion domains. The aim is to provide an overview of the data, partly in the hope that it will encourage further analysis.