People in some UK postcodes are almost four times more likely to die before their 60th birthday than those in other areas, according to analysis by the campaign group Health Equals. On average, one in 13 people (7.8%) in England die before reaching this milestone.
Highest and Lowest Early Death Rates
The figure rises to more than one in seven (14.7%) in Blackpool and one in eight (12.8%) in Glasgow City. Other areas with high proportions of people dying before 60 include Merthyr Tydfil in North Wales (12.7%), Dundee City (12.6%) and North Ayrshire (12.5%) in Scotland, and Middlesbrough (12.3%) in the North East of England.
At the other end of the ranking, Hart had the lowest proportion of early deaths, with just one in 25 people (4%) not reaching their 60th birthday. Similar high survival rates were seen in Uttlesford, Essex (4.4%), Surrey Heath (4.5%), Richmond Upon Thames (4.5%) and Wokingham (4.6%).
Campaigners Call for Action
Health Equals is a coalition of more than 130 charities and organisations campaigning to tackle health inequalities. Members include the British Red Cross, Alzheimer’s Research UK, the British Heart Foundation and Cancer Research UK.
The group’s senior policy fellow, Joe Farrington-Douglas, said the differences in survival rates beyond 60 “aren't happening by accident”. He added: “The reality is that not everyone has the same opportunities to live a long and healthy life. This happens way before people enter a doctor's surgery or hospital doors.”
Health Equals said the 11-percentage-point disparity between local authorities with the highest and lowest survival rates at age 60 exposed the human cost of health inequalities. The coalition has called on MPs to amend the Health Bill currently going through Parliament to strengthen duties and require the Government to publish a cross-government strategy to address inequality.
The coalition’s director, Paul McDonald, said: “Your postcode shouldn’t determine your shelf life. But in the UK, it does. Behind every statistic is a person, a family and a community experiencing loss that is often preventable.”
Overall life expectancy at birth in the UK stood at 83.0 years for women and 79.1 years for men in 2022-24, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which said life expectancy had remained virtually unchanged for the last 10 years. There was an increased mortality rate during 2020, 2021 and 2022 due to COVID.
