THE working classes are in rapid decline, with the middle class poised to become the majority of the population by 2020, according to a report from the Future Foundation think-tank.

In the past 40 years the proportion of Britons who regard themselves as middle class has risen from 30 to 43 per cent.

Although the report predicts that this trend is set to continue, it notes that class distinctions are becoming increasingly blurred, with 36 per cent of builders classifying themselves as middle class and 29 per cent of bank managers saying they are working class.

William Nelson, author of the report, Middle Britain, said that the traditional markers of social class — job, family background and wealth — appeared to be fading. Far more significant now in determining social class were people’s attitudes towards saving and spending.

“Class difference is not so much about how much money we have, but what we do with it. The defining predictor of being middle-class is ownership of shares and ISAs and the accumulation of assets for the future. With people who describe themselves as working- class, the emphasis is on saving up for, or borrowing for, specific purchases or treats,” he said.

“In that sense, we could say that the true mark of the middle classes is ‘hidden money’ — those assets that we would not necessarily be aware of unless we knew a person well enough.” The rise of mass affluence since the 1970s means that although today’s working classes are as wealthy as the middle classes were 20 years ago. The survey, commissioned by the Liverpool and Victoria friendly society, found that big income and wealth differences persist.

Middle-class people have average incomes of £25,500, some 24 per cent more than the average £20,500 working-class income.

The middle classes are more likely to own their own home (84 per cent) than the working classes (75 per cent) and the average value of a middle-class home is £220,000, compared with £129,000 for the average working-class home, according to the report, which is based on a survey of 1,000 people as well as data from the British Household Panel Survey and the British Election Panel Survey. The report also suggests that “muddle class” may be a more appropriate description than middle- class, as some new class types are emerging that defy traditional class differentiators. These include the ROBs (rich ordinary Britons), the 2.67 million people who regard themselves as working-class even though their wealth ranks them in the top fifth of the population for asset wealth. Next are the HEWs (high-earning workers), the 534,000 people who earn more than £100,000 a year in household income, yet still claim that they are working class. HEWs are worth a total of £53 billion. SALs (suburban asset lightweights) are the 1.84 million people who call themselves middle-class, yet are asset-poor and are in the bottom fifth of the population in terms of asset wealth.

The report also found that fewer than 1 per cent describe themselves as upper-class, making generalisations about this group difficult. As their average income is actually lower than the average for middle classes, it is difficult to know whether they are sadly deluded or eccentric aristocrats on their uppers.

The top 10 per cent who own more than half the total wealth prefer to classify themselves as middle-class.

And does any of this matter? “We need to recognise the value of assets we can store up in savings, investments and property that will grow over the course of decades and be passed down from generation to generation,” he said.

“In that sense we could all benefit from being more middle-class.”

AN ATTITUDE . . . OR A BIRTHRIGHT?

The WORKING class

A “live for today” attitude; believe that income is the best measure of social status; borrow to spend on treats

The MIDDLE classes

Invest in shares and ISAs; believe that education is the best measure of status; live in a detached house

The UPPER classes

Generally describe themselves as middle class; avoid taxes; universally disliked

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