You are Here : Overview

Welcome to the website where we describe the wellbeing and health needs of people in Newcastle - not just those who live here now but also for the population profile we project for the future.

Our long-term aims are to:

• Improve quantity of life by adding life years to the population of Newcastle
• Improve quality of life by improving people's experience of life
• Improve equality of life by reducing the variation in life expectancy and self-reported health between different communities

We use the World Health Organisation's definition of health which is "a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".  This social model of health informs the way we have developed our Joint Strategic Needs Assessment so it takes a range of different perspectives the factors that influence it.

Overall, the people of Newcastle experience worse health than the rest of England and there are also inequalities between communities within the city.  Poor health affects both length of life and people's experience of life.

Quantity of life

Life expectancy is used to measure 'length of life' - the average length of time someone born today could expect to live based on current death rates.  When we look at life expectancy information for the city, we see that on average men live 2 years less and women live 1.3 years less than the England average.

All age all cause mortality is a measure that closely relates to life expectancy.  It tells us about the ages people die and the clinical causes.

When we analyse the death information and compare it to the England average, we see that the main clinical causes of premature death in Newcastle are

For men:

• cancer, predominantly lung cancer
• coronary heart disease (a form of cardio vascular disease)
• chronic cirrhosis of the liver (closely linked to alcohol use)

For women

• cancer, predominantly lung cancer
• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• coronary heart disease (a form of cardio vascular disease)

Quality of Life

Disability free life expectancy is used to measure the average length of time someone born today could expect to live free from limiting long-standing illness.  It draws on information from the 2001 census.  When we look at disability free life expectancy information for the city, we see that on average men have 4.9 years less and women have 3.3 years less disability free life than the England average.

Self-reported health is also used to measure 'quality of life' and is based on perception surveys carried out with samples of the population.  71.5% of Newcastle residents reported that their health was  ‘very good/ good’ ranking the city seventh out of the eight core cities. The core city average was 73.4% which was lower than the average for local authorities in England at 76.6%. (Place Survey 2008)

Equality of Life

When we compare length of life for people in different geographical communities, we find that:

• on average men in Elswick ward live 12.5 years less than those in Parklands ward.
• on average women in Byker ward live 11 years less than those in Parklands ward.

When we compare disability free life expectancy for people in different geographical communities, we find that:

• On average men in South Gosforth ward have 18.8 more years free of disability than men in Walker ward.
• On average women in South Gosforth ward have 14.4 more years free of disability than women in Monkchester ward.

Disability free life expectancy information is derived from 2001 Census data so can only be mapped to the former ward boundaries in the City.  This shows that people living in most deprived wards live shorter lives and live more of their shorter life with a disability.

People's self-reported health is also different in different parts of the city.  Residents reporting their health as very good/good varies across the city ranging from 42.3% in Walker ward to 78.9% in  North Jesmond ward and relates to the level of deprivation in wards with residents in the most deprived wards less likely to consider their health is good. (Residents Survey 2009/10)

Self-reported long standing illness, disability or infirmity by residents is also related to levels of deprivation where over 45% of residents in the most deprived wards have a long standing illness, disability of infirmity compared to less than 35% in the more affluent wards. (Residents Survey 2009/10)