Relationship between income and healthy life expectancy by local authority
About 2 mins
Key points
- Local authority areas with higher incomes tend to have higher healthy life expectancies.
- Local authority areas in the south of England tend to be areas with higher average incomes and higher healthy life expectancies.
- Local authority areas in the north of England are more likely to have lower incomes and lower life expectancies.
Money and resources can influence health in a number of ways, particularly for people living in poverty and deprivation. Financial strain is a source of stress and reduces income available for products and services that promote good health, or increases health-harming coping behaviours
This chart shows the relationship between healthy life expectancy and equivalised income after housing costs, by local authority in England, highlighting whether a local authority is in the north, the Midlands or the south.
- Local authority areas with higher incomes tend to have higher male and female healthy life expectancy. The association holds when other measures of household income are used (such as income before housing costs).
- Areas in southern England generally have higher average incomes and higher average healthy life expectancies.
- Areas with lower incomes and lower healthy life expectancy are more likely to be in the north of England.
- Local authority income was estimated using the income estimates for small areas and weighted by small area population numbers.
- Small areas are Middle layer Super Output Areas (MSOAs), based on the 2011 Census. MSOAs are geographical areas that comprise 2,000–6,000 households (5,000–15,000 people).
- ‘North’ comprises all areas in the north of England, that is, North East, North West and Yorkshire and the Humber. ‘Midlands’ refers to East and West Midlands. ‘South’ encompasses all areas in the south of England, ie South East, South West, London and the East of England.
- Healthy life expectancy is defined as the number of years an individual is expected to live in good health, based here on period life expectancy and a self-rated measure of good health. Period life expectancy is calculated using current mortality rates.
- Income is defined as monthly net equivalised household income after housing costs. Equivalisation is a method that adjusts income to account for differences in household size and composition.
Source: Office for Health Improvement & Disparities, Public Health Profiles, 2021–23; Office for National Statistics, Income estimates for small areas, England and Wales, 2019/20; Office for National Statistics, Middle layer Super Output Area population estimates, 2020
