THE North-East will be one of the biggest losers when it comes to the Government's welfare reforms - with the area set to lose £620m a year.

Research commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) and Oxfam predicts the reforms will have profoundly uneven effect across the country - with older industrial areas, down-at-heal seaside towns, some London boroughs and a number of Northern cities hardest hit.

The North-East is set to lose an anticipated £620m a year by 2020-21 due to the post-2015 welfare reforms with a loss per working age adult of £380 a year. The region is also estimated to face at least 9,000 job losses in local consumer services.

Three areas feature in the Top 40 worst affected districts: Middlesbrough being third worst; Hartlepool, 32nd and South Tyneside, 40th.

The North-East also tops the list of worst affected across eight of the 17 welfare reforms. Those impacting people in the North-East more than anywhere else are: the 'Bedroom Tax'; Non-Dependent Deductions; one per cent uprating and the new reforms, capping social housing rents and the Benefits Freeze.

The first of the new reforms take effect next month and, collectively, they are expected to take almost £13 billion a year nationally from claimants by 2020, according to the research by Sheffield Hallam University.

By contrast. much of southern England outside London escapes relatively lightly. The ten areas losing the least money are all in the South East.

The research estimates that couples with two or more dependant children will lose an average of £1,450 a year, while lone parents with two or more lose an average of £1,750 a year. Eighty three per cent of the overall financial loss falls on families with children.

Emma Lewell-Buck, MP for South Shields and Shadow Minister for Communities and Local Government said: "These figures revealed by this report are shocking but not surprising.

"Once again we see the North-East being hammered and taking the brunt of the cuts whilst the South East remains largely unscathed.

"Once again we see the cuts fall unevenly, onto the people who can least afford it - families, working or not, with children and those living in the social rented sector."

"The contempt shown by this Government to the North of England is truly breathtaking, with local authorities in the most deprived areas suffering the greatest financial losses."

How the welfare reforms are predicted to affect the North-East

The 'Bedroom Tax': More than 40,000 households affected. Middlesbrough and South Tyneside in Top 6 worst affected.

Council Tax Support: South Tyneside 3rd worst affected borough, with Middlesbrough 7th.

Personal Independence Payments: 59,0000 people to lose £92 per year with £150m annual total loss

Employment and Support Allowance: 18,000 people set to lose £22 a year with £35m annual total loss.

Child Benefit: Loss per working age adult of £72 a year with £120m total annual loss.

Tax Credits: 210,000 households to lose £122 per year per working age adult with £200m annual total loss.

One per cent uprating: Loss per working age adult of 380,000 affected households of £81 per year with £140m total annual loss.

Local Housing Allowance Cap: North-East worst affected region with loss per working age adult of £8 per year.

Employment and Support Allowance: 28,000 affected individuals estimated to lose £22 a year with total annual loss of £36m.

Benefit Cap: Third worst affected region with 10,000 affected individuals to lose £14 a year, with total annual loss of £25m. Middlesbrough 2nd worst affected local authority with loss per working age adult predicted at £24 per year.

Benefit Freeze: North-East will take the biggest hit on the Benefit Freeze. Of 380,000 households affected, each adult will lose £119 per year with a total annual loss of £200m. Middlesbrough in Top 5 worst affected, with each working age adult due to lose £161 a year.