Health inequalities
What are health inequalities?
Health inequalities are unfair differences in health between different groups of people. The environments we grow, live and work in play a key role in our health - this is impacted by factors such as income, housing, environment, transport, education and jobs (the wider determinants of health).
Worse health outcomes also occur when people have limited access to health care, experience poorer quality care, and are exposed to things that harm our health, such as smoking and alcohol.
Taking action to improve all these factors gives people a greater chance of good mental and physical health and can help them to thrive.
Who experiences health inequalities?
Health inequalities are often greater for those living in more deprived areas. Life expectancy for men living in the most deprived areas of England is 52.3 years - compared to 70.5 years for men in the least deprived areas. Some groups may be more vulnerable to health inequalities, including those on a low income, children with care experience and people with multiple and complex needs (such as people experiencing homelessness and addiction).
You might also see health inequalities relating to:
Sex and gender
- For example, men are more likely to be living with overweight and obesity than women. (Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (2024) Public Health Outcomes Framework.)
Sexuality
- For example, 52% of LGBT people said they experienced depression in a previous year compared to 16% of the whole population. (Stonewall (2018) LGBT in Britain: health report.)
Ethnicity
- For example, people of South Asian ethnicity are 2 to 4 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than someone of White European ethnicity. (Diabetes UK (2023) Tackling inequality commission report.)
Disability
- For example, people with a learning disability are less likely to be screened for a range of cancers. (Mencap (2024) Health inequalities.)
We know that the pandemic affected certain groups more than others, widening the health inequalities that already existed.
Health inequalities for children, young people and families in Gateshead
- some areas within Gateshead have a lower proportion of children achieving a good level of development at age 5 compared to other areas in Gateshead
- in 2021/22, 42.8% of pupils eligible for free school meals in Gateshead progressed into higher education - compared to 70.8% of pupils who were not eligible for free school meals
- the percentage of children in Reception who are living with overweight and obesity in Gateshead (24%) is higher than the England average (21.3%)
- 30.5% of 5 year olds have visually obvious dental decay in Gateshead compared to 23.7% of 5 year olds across England
- young people aged 10-24 years in Gateshead have a higher rate of hospital admissions as a result of self-harm compared to the England rate
Find out more about our Health and Wellbeing Strategy
Downloads
Better Health Gateshead leaflet (PDF, 99 KB)(opens new window)