Thousands of households were classed as overcrowded in Oldham, according to newly released figures from the 2021 census.

Asian-only households were the most likely to be overcrowded in the borough, with a rate more than eight times that of white-only households, showing a racial disparity in how the issue affects Oldhamers.

A campaign group has blamed overcrowding across the country on slow rates of housebuilding nationally and ‘skyrocketing’ rents across England and Wales.

Figures show around 6,995 homes were judged to be overcrowded in Oldham – 7.5 per cent of all homes in the area.

Meanwhile, 58,795 homes (63.1 per cent) were classed as ‘under-occupied’ – meaning they had rooms to spare.

Across England, households comprised of people of black backgrounds had the highest rates of overcrowding, at 16.1 per cent of homes – compared to 4.4 per cent across the general population.

In addition, Muslim households were five times as likely to be overcrowded across the country.

A similar situation was seen in Oldham, with 26.7 per cent of households with only Asian people living in them and 20.8 per cent of households with only black people living in them overcrowded, compared to just 3.1 per cent of households with only white people in them.

This rose to 28.1 per cent of Muslim-only Oldham households being overcrowded, nearly four times the Oldham average.

Overcrowding is calculated by looking at how many rooms are available in a residence and assessing whether they are adequate for the number of people living there.

The ONS figures show renters were more likely to live in crowded accommodation than those who own their own homes.

In Oldham, social renters were most likely to struggle for space, with 12.2 per cent impacted.

Ben Twomey, chief executive of the campaign group Generation Rent, said a failure to build enough homes and stop ‘skyrocketing’ rents has put private renters in a tricky situation.

“If you have children or are an older renter, being forced into an overcrowded house can be particularly stressful,” he added.

As of 2021, there were around 4,030 households with dependent children suffering from a lack of space in Oldham.

Sam Tims, senior economist at the New Economics Foundation, said it was no surprise some groups were suffering worse housing conditions.

He said: “Every family deserves to live in an affordable and comfortable home, near to friends and family with access to good public services.

“Yet while over two-thirds of houses across the country are under-occupied, the worsening housing emergency is forcing over a million households to live in homes too small for their needs.”

Mr Tims further cautioned a ‘miserly’ welfare system was further exacerbating the problem.

London had a far higher rate of overcrowded housing than any other region of England and Wales. Every one of the top 10 most crowded areas was in the capital – other than Slough, in London's commuter belt.

Both the New Economics Foundation and Generation Rent said building more social homes is the first step to tackling the issue.

Oldham Council was contacted for comment on this story.