In Essex 1 in 3 adults will be aged 65+ by 2035, and with the increasing picture of an older population the demand and need of these are changing.

The health of the population continues to be a challenge for all partners within Essex, and even with an increase in the life expectancy in recent year there are still notable differences across the districts in Essex.

According to the last published Census 82% of the Essex residents are in good health, this is slightly better than England average of 81%.

• The average life expectancy in Essex is 80.2 years for men, and 83.7 for women.
• Except for Tendring, Harlow and Basildon, the life expectancy for both men and women in Essex districts is in line with or above the average life expectancies for women and men in England.
• Life expectancy is stalling due to Covid-19 but there is a significant gap between the most deprived and the least deprived areas in Essex. 8 years for men 6.5 years for women.

• The average healthy life expectancy in Essex is 64.2 years for men and 65.6 for women, indicating women have 1.4 more years of healthy life than men.
• While women in Essex are likely to live longer, they are also likely to have more years of ill health – 18.1 years compared to 16 for men.
• The gap between the healthy life expectancies of men and women is wider in Essex than at national level, where for men it is 63.2, and for women it is 63.5.

This is showing that a significant period of people’s life is spent living with declining health.

In Essex we have a higher rate of adults that are overweight or obese 64%, compared to England average which is 62.8%.

21.4% of adults in Essex undertake less than 30 minutes of physical activity per week, this is all important facts leading to the health of our community.