Depending on where you live in Calderdale, you may live longer

Depending on where you live in Calderdale, you may live longer in some wards than others.
Average life expectancy varies depending on which Calderdale ward you live inAverage life expectancy varies depending on which Calderdale ward you live in
Average life expectancy varies depending on which Calderdale ward you live in

Figures for the period 2014-16, included in his annual report by Calderdale’s Director of Public Health Paul Butcher, show there is a gap of 7.7 years average life expectancy for men between the borough’s most and least deprived wards. At 7.6 years, the gap for women was almost the same.

There are differences even between neighbouring wards.

For example, a man in Todmorden can expect to live on average for 77.90 years, while his neighbour down the road in Hebden Bridge, in Calder, may live to an average life expectancy of 81.74, almost four years longer, and women 80.16 as opposed to 85.75, five years difference.

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The Calderdale average life expectancy for men is 78.70 and for women 82.10 years, but although men and women in Calderdale are on average living longer, this is below the national average and a higher proportion of their lives are in slightly poorer health than the national average.

Ovenden ward has the lowest figure for men, at 72.90 years, and one of the recommendations in Mr Butcher’s report, Age Old Questions, which examines ageing in Calderdale and how council, health and other partners can tackle issues, is that the reasons for this should be looked into closely. Women in Ovenden ward on average might live to 77.91, also the lowest figure in the borough.

The Ovenden men’s figure is particularly of concern as it is a reduction of almost three years life expectancy on average since the last set of figures, for 2012-2014. Park and Illingworth wards have also shown small reductions.

At the other end of the scale, men living in Ryburn can expect an average 83.8 years of life, while women in Northowram and Shelf ward might live on average to 89.03.

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Mr Butcher said generally life expectancy was increasing but the picture ward by ward was mixed.

“It’s important to look at the reduction of life expectancy in Ovenden and to work with primary and tertiary care providers to see why.

“It’s not statistically significant yet but is it a trend?

“Lessons from that will be applied anywhere else if they are below average,” he said.

Mr Butcher said a possible reason might be, for example, people not going to see their GP. If patterns emerged, health services could learn from it.

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It was known that eating healthily, not smoking and environmental air quality impacted on health but carrying out the report’s recommendations would reveal if there was anything different.

According to Mr Butcher’s report, the average life expectancy for men in each ward is: Brighouse, 79.40; Calder, 81.74; Elland, 78.04; Greetland and Stainland, 81.08; Hipperholme and Lightcliffe, 81.35; Illingworth, 77.05; Luddenden Foot, 80.17; Northowram and Shelf, 79.77; Ovenden, 72.90; Park, 74.23; Rastrick, 78.54; Ryburn, 83.80; Skircoat, 79.72; Sowerby Bridge, 78.45; Todmorden, 77.90; Town, 77.23; Warley, 81.01.

And the life expectancy for women in each ward is: Brighouse, 83.26; Calder, 85.75; Elland, 83.34; Greetland and Stainland, 82.63; Hipperholme and Lightcliffe, 83.14; Illingworth, 81.34; Luddenden Foot, 83.13; Northowram and Shelf, 89.03; Ovenden, 77.91; Park, 78.76; Rastrick, 80.97; Ryburn, 85.20; Skircoat, 83.82; Sowerby Bridge, 83.72; Todmorden, 80.18; Town, 82.07; Warley, 82.59.