11% have a second home and 7% have a personalised numberplate

Wealth in London rose by 31% since 2006-08, but fell by 10% in North East

Poorest half of families own just 9% of total aggregate wealth, ONS says

One in five graduates now go on to be worth more than £1million

One in five graduates who hold at least one university degree go on to become a millionaire, according to new data.



Official figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 20 per cent of all adults who complete higher education - equivalent to more than two million people - have a wealth of £1million or more.

In contrast only three per cent of people who have assets totalling more than £1million have no formal qualifications.



The figures also reveal that education is becoming more important to becoming a millionaire as in 2006-07, only 16 per cent of graduates were worth more than £1million.

David Willets, the universities minister said the new study reveals why going to university is a very good deal, despite rising tuition fees.



He told the Daily Telegraph: 'It shows why it’s fair to ask graduates to pay back the cost of their higher education, and why increasing the number of people who go to university will spread wealth and opportunity.’



In addition the figures also show that Britain’s richest families own almost half of the country’s household wealth.

The wealthiest 10 per cent of households hold 44 per cent of the total money tied up in property, pensions, possessions and hard cash.

Amazingly more than one in 10 people own a second home and a similar proportion can call themselves millionaires.

How the richest 10 per cent own 44 per cent of all household wealth

Pensions and property make up the biggest slice of household wealth

Since 2006-08, the proportion of families with possessions with more than £60,000 has risen sharply

In 2010-12 the combined wealth of all private households in Great Britain was £9.5 trillion, up by almost 12 per cent £8.4 trillion in 2006-08 as the financial crisis hit.

The average household total wealth stood at £218,400 in 2010-12, up from £196,700 in 2006-08.

Even after the financial crash, wealth is skewed towards the richest 10 per cent, who held 44 per cent of all wealth.

By comparison the poorest 50 per cent of households owned just 9 per cent of total aggregate household wealth, the Office for National Statistics said.

Overall 9 per cent of households have more than £1million, the same proportion who have less than £12,500.

The gap between rich and poor also appears to be widening. In 2010-12, the wealthiest 10 per cent of households were 4.8 times wealthier than the bottom 50 per cent.

The wealthiest 20 per cent of households had 105 times more than the least wealthy 20 per cent, up from 92 times more in 2008-10.

Rachael Orr, Oxfam Head of UK Poverty Programme said: 'This is another shocking chapter in a tale of two Britains, further evidence of increasing inequality at a time when five rich families have the same wealth as 12 million people.

'We need our politicians to grasp the nettle and make the narrowing gap between the richest and poorest a top priority. It cannot be right that in Britain today a small elite are getting richer and richer while millions are struggling to make ends meet.'

How household wealth varies across the country

Between 2006-08 and 2010-12, household wealth in London rose by 31 per cent, but it fell by 10.1 per cent in the North East

Private pensions and property each account for 38 per cent all wealth, with financial wealth making up 14 per cent and physical wealth – possessions – just 12 per cent.

The value of physical wealth – including furniture, clothing and gadgets – varies widely. Around two per cent have household contents worth more than £100,000, while 52 per cent say their possesions are worth less than £30,000.

There are also variations across the country. Average household wealth in the South East stood at £309,700 in 2010-12, more than double the £142,700 in the South East.

The impact of the financial crash in 2007 has also been more dramatic in the north and Midlands. Between 2006-08 and 2010-12, household wealth in London rose by 31 per cent, but it fell by 10.1 per cent in the North East, and barely rose in the West Midlands (0.8 per cent) and East Midlands (0.5 per cent).

Three-quarters of homes own a car and 7 per cent own a personalised numberplate

More than 1 in 10 people own a second property or land, including 3 per cent who have a second home abroad

Three-quarters of families own a car, and 4 per cent have a motorbike. Meanwhile 7 per cent have a personalised numberplate, up from 5 per cent in 2006-08.

Separated men and women were the most likely to live in households with total wealth of less than £12,500 (23 per cent and 21 per cent respectively), the ONS said.

Married men and women were the most likely to live in households with total wealth of £1 million or more (14 per cent and 13 per cent respectively).

The ONS added: ‘Compared with single and cohabitating individuals, married individuals are on average older.

‘Knowing also that the earnings of older workers are higher than those of younger workers and that those older individuals will have had longer to accumulate wealth might go some way towards explaining these differences.

‘Compared with single individuals, those who were married might have accumulated more wealth if they were both working and in receipt of a higher joint income.’

Marries men are the group most likely to be millionaires

Separated women are most likely to live in homes with wealth of less than £12,500

The under-35s were most likely to live in households with the lowest amounts of total wealth.

In 2010-12, 13 per cent of 0-15 year olds and 14 per cent of 16-24 year olds and 25-34 year olds were living in households with a total wealth of less than £12,500.

Just 4 per cent of people aged 55-64 years or over-65 lived in households in this lowest total wealth band.

However, 22 per cent of all 55-64 year olds were living in households with total wealth of £1 million or more.

The ONS said: ‘Individuals in this age group still find themselves in the wealth accumulation phase, and income, such as earnings from employment, enable opportunities to increase total wealth.’

There was also a small increase in the percentage of households who own an extra property is up from 10 per cent in 2008-10 to 11 per cent in 2010-12.