Reducing health inequalities
Healthy life expectancy
Healthy life expectancy at birth figures for Coventry residents are not significantly different to the England average. The latest data 2015-17 remains similar to the 2014-16 data at 62.9 years for male healthy life expectancy at birth and 63.5 years for females. However, people in Coventry on average, have a shorter life expectancy than the average for the country. The Director of Public Health Annual Report 2019: Bridging the Gap focussed on inequalities in the city and illustrates a range of factors that contribute to inequalities in life expectancy and healthy life expectancy. In Coventry there is a large gap between healthy life expectancy and life expectancy between people in the highest socioeconomic groups and those in the lowest socioeconomic groups, representing a large window of need when people start to require more support from health and care services. Life expectancy and healthy life expectancy are overarching indicators of the wellbeing of our residents and wide range of indicators and actions across the Council Plan contribute to this picture.
The city’s Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy, developed in partnership with senior leaders from across the public and voluntary and community sectors, sets out a four-year vision for health and wellbeing in Coventry and will be used by local health and care partners to inform plans for commissioning services and shape how we work together to meet health and social care needs and address the social determinants of health. The current focus is on loneliness and social isolation, young people’s mental health and wellbeing, and working differently with our communities.
