Health deprivation

The information on this page was compiled before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has had a significant impact on many aspects of daily life.  Data and intelligence are emerging all the time about the effects of the virus and the measures taken to control its spread.  Accordingly, we will update this page as relevant information becomes available.

People born in the most deprived 10% of areas in Herefordshire have a shorter life expectancy at birth than those living in the least deprived 10% cent by an average of 4.2 years for males and an average of 3.0 years for females.  However, this gap is one of the smallest among counties with a similar level of overall deprivation to Herefordshire.

Those living in the most deprived areas are 36% more likely to die prematurely (i.e. under 75 years of age) of cancer; 22% more likely to die prematurely of cardiovascular disease and 18% more likely to die from respiratory disease. Residents of the most deprived areas of Herefordshire are approximately a third more likely to die as a result of suicide than the county population in general.

Adults (35+ years) residing in the most deprived areas are a third more likely to be admitted to hospital as a consequence of their smoking than the population of Herefordshire overall, and smoking related mortality rates are over 40% higher among the most deprived population quartile than in the County overall.

Health deprivation and disability is one of the domains that makes up the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2019 (IMD 2019).

Key points

Nine Herefordshire LSOAs [1] are among the 25% most deprived in England in terms of Health and Disability, four less than in 2015.

The largest concentration of health deprivation is in south Hereford, plus pockets in north of the city and in Leominster.

No LSOAs are in the 10% most health deprived across in England.

Since 2010 ‘Belmont-Whitefriars’ in south Hereford and ‘Upper Bosbury’ north of Ledbury have shown steady increase in relative health deprivation.

There are 35 LSOAs that are among the 25% least deprived in England. Most of these are scattered around the rural parts of the county.

The health deprivation and disability domain of the ID 2019 is made up of the following indicators:

• Years of potential life lost: an age and sex standardised measure of premature death
• Comparative illness and disability ratio: an age and sex standardised morbidity/disability ratio
• Acute morbidity: an age and sex standardised rate of emergency admission to hospital
• Mood and anxiety disorders: a composite based on the rate of adults suffering from mood and anxiety disorders, hospital episodes data, suicide mortality data and health benefits data

Figure 1:  Maps showing the areas of Herefordshire that are amongst the most deprived in England according to the health and disability domain of the Indices of Deprivation 2019.

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

[1]Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs) are fixed statistical geographies of about 1,500 people designed by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). For more information please see the useful definitions page.