New figures show Scotland’s life expectancy remains below pre-pandemic levels
/This article was featured in the SCDC Weekly - 30th October 2024.
New data shows life expectancy in Scotland is still lower than pre-pandemic levels, despite increases since 2020-2022.
Published by National Records for Scotland, the research shows an increase since 2020-22 by 7 weeks for females, and 14 weeks for males. Between the early 1980s and early 2010s, life expectancy was increasing in Scotland until in 2012-2014 it plateaued for several years, followed by a decrease in 2018-2020.
Scotland also continues to have the lowest life expectancy of other UK countries, with figures showing it at 80.9 years for females and 76.9 years for males – over 2 years lower compared to England.
Life expectancy is highest in East Renfrewshire and lowest in Glasgow City - with a gap of 10.5 years for females and 13.2 years for males living just miles apart - showing starkly how significant, unfair, and unjust the effects of health inequalities can be.
Scotland's inequalities have reached a crisis point, with recent research showing increases in poverty, a lack of wage growth, increased food insecurity, homelessness and high deprivation-related attainment gaps in schools.
Community-led health responses are one way to begin tackling this troubling trend. With proper support, communities experiencing disadvantage and poor health can identify and define what is important to them about their health and wellbeing, and take the lead in making positive change happen.
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