Almost one in three workers in Waltham Forest are paid less than the London living wage, research has revealed.

A report by the New Policy Institute showed 31 percent of jobs in the borough paid less than £8.80 - the amount a person needs to earn to cover the basic costs of living in the capital.

The proportion in Redbridge is 27 per cent.

According to the research, there were 640,000 low paid jobs in London last year, 45,000 more than in 2012.

Mubin Haq, of the charity Trust for London, which funded the research and aims to reduce poverty, said: "The true measure of a recovery should be what it means for those nearest the bottom.

"With a 7.5 per cent increase in the number of jobs that are low paid, these new figures suggest that for many poorer Londoners, working hard is not lifting them out of poverty.

“This can and must change.

“Employers can do a number of things to help, such as redesigning jobs so workers have more responsibility, enabling greater productivity and allowing for increases in pay.”

Those in Waltham Forest earning less than the standard are believed to include some care workers employed by the council.

Those working in retail and hospitality are most likely to earn less than the living wage as the industries account for 49 per cent of all low paid jobs in the capital.

Low paid work is most common among employees of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin with 44 per cent paid below£8.80.

Workers of Black African origin make up 41 per cent of low paid employees and the white British workforce is the least likely to be paid below the London living wage.