The authors sought to determine whether geographic access to fast-food outlets varied in relation to the deprivation of the area, and the socioeconomic ranking of local schools. They also assessed associations with access to healthier food outlets, namely supermarkets. Neighbourhood deprivation was assessed using census data, and school socioeconomic data were obtained from the Ministry of Education. Travel distances between neighbourhoods and schools and the nearest fast-food and health food outlets were calculated. There were significant negative associations between neighbourhood deprivation and local access to both multinational and independent fast-food outlets, both p < 0.001. In the least socially deprived areas, the travel distance to fast-food outlets was at least twice as far as that in the most deprived areas. A similar relationship was found for healthier food outlets such as supermarkets (p < 0.001). Neighbourhood deprivation correlates to geographic access to both fast-food outlets and supermarkets.
