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16 March 2021

Cheshire East revealed as one of the healthiest boroughs to live in

Cheshire East is in the top 20 of all 149 English local councils for overall health in the Office for National Statistics (ONS) first official Health Index for England.

The borough's ranking in the report was significantly boosted by Cheshire East Council being named the ninth most physically active council in England, as reported in the Sunday Times.

The three main categories assessed in the report were healthy people, healthy lives, and healthy places.

Cheshire East's overall health and wellbeing index score of 103.3 is 3.6 above the national index average and 5.9 above the average for authorities throughout the North West. The borough is comparable with some of the most affluent areas in the country.

Local authority scores are influenced by a combination of common health outcome measures such as obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer levels, along with other health factors including access to employment opportunities, education, and housing.

Cheshire East's high levels of physical activity and adult healthy eating support the borough's general healthiness, which has ensured that the borough has been well placed to deal with the challenges of Covid-19. The authority's relatively clean air, very few areas of air pollution, small non-densely populated towns, low crime levels and relatively high levels of green space have collectively had a positive effect on the borough's wellbeing.

Here is a link to the ONS Health Index for England Report:-
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/healthandwellbeing/articles/developingthehealthindexforengland/2015to2018

Average female and male life expectancies are 83.5 and 80.3 respectively in Cheshire East, which are both higher than the national averages.

As of 2018, 77.5 per cent of the borough's working-age residents were in employment, with an unemployed rate of 3.1 per cent. Cheshire East's employment rate is slightly higher, and unemployment rate is slighter lower than the national and North West averages.

the full press release is attached