Private rent prices in the borough are the fourth most in expensive in the country, pricing out many families and individuals.

A new report by housing charity Shelter has revealed that the average cost of renting a two bedroom home in the borough is �1,718 – a staggering 77 per cent of the average take home wage and �360 above the London average.

Prospective tenants can also expect to pay averages of �543 for a room, �1,266 for one bedroom properties, �2,039 for a three bedroom home – 93 per cent of average take home earnings – and an eye-watering �2,733 for four bedrooms plus – which is 24 per cent more than the average take home pay.

Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn said one-third of the borough’s population are living in private rented accommodation and that the unaffordability of living in the area will only result in greater divisions between the rich and poor.

He said: “It is damaging to our community. Many young people pay 60 to 70 per cent of their take home pay on rent and are living in insecurity.

“Those with mortgages or those in council housing or with a housing association pay much less.

“Much of the borough is the domain of those that can afford very high rents or people that are fortunate enough or in great enough difficulty to be given housing association or council properties.

“This will only lead to a greater division in the borough.”

Mr Corbyn said that more council housing needs to be built alongside the government taking action to regulate privatised rents, like many EU countries.

Shelter, which is based in Islington, is also calling on the government to act.

The charity’s chief executive, Campbell Robb, said: “We have become depressingly familiar with first time buyers being priced out of the housing market, but the impact of unaffordable rents in London is more dramatic.

“With no cheaper alternative, ordinary people are forced to cut their spending on essentials like food and heating, or uproot and move away from jobs, schools and families.

“Government must urgently consider how private renting can become a secure, affordable option for families, and not a heavy financial burden that makes parents choose between buying food for their children and paying the rent.

“This should be the wake-up call to finally take action to address our rent crisis.”