Health and wellbeing in Kensington and Chelsea

Kensington and Chelsea is uniquely diverse, and rich in culture and heritage. Achieving our ambition of becoming the best council and making Kensington and Chelsea a greener, safer and fairer place to live allow us to work together to improve health and wellbeing in the borough.

Where we do well in physical health and mental wellbeing

• The percentage of residents who say their health is very good is the highest in England.
• Life expectancy for women is the highest in the country. For men, it is the tenth highest. Healthy life expectancy is also high.
• The percentage of pregnant women who smoke by the end of their pregnancy is among the lowest in England.
• A high percentage of babies have breastmilk as their first feed.
• Kensington and Chelsea has a low rate of teenage pregnancies.
• Hospital admissions caused by unintentional and deliberate injuries in young people aged 15-24 is the sixth lowest in England.
• The percentage of adults eating the recommended 5 portions of fruit and vegetables per day is the fifth highest in England
• While we want to improve, our employment rate for residents with a learning disability is higher than other areas.
• Kensington and Chelsea has a low under 75 mortality rate. The death rate due to cancer in people under 75 is the sixth lowest in England.

Our physical health and mental wellbeing challenges

• We need to tackle health inequalities and reduce the gap in life expectancy. Kensington and Chelsea has the highest life expectancy for women in the country (women: 86; men: 81, the tenth highest). However, residents who live in some wards will have a much lower life expectancy than residents in other wards. The difference between the wards with the highest life expectancy and the lowest life expectancy is 18 years for men and 17 years for women.
• Westminster has an ageing population: 14 percent of residents are aged 65 or over. Many people live for longer but in poor health and with a diminished quality of life. On average, men spend around 14 years in poor health and women around 20 years.
• Obesity is high in both children and adults.
• Almost half of children are overweight by the time they leave primary school. Children living in Golborne are three times more likely to be overweight than those living in Campden. Half of all adults are overweight or obese.
• Mental health and wellbeing is important throughout our lives. Over one in six children and young people have a mental health disorder. One in five 1 in 5 adults report feeling anxious.
• Screening and immunisation rates are among the lowest in the country. Cancer screening rates are among the lowest in the country. Our uptake of all types of childhood vaccinations uptake is among the 25 percent lowest in England and below the 95 percent target to stop the spread and protect the community.

How do we address these challenges?

No single organisation can solve these challenges alone. We need to work more closely together with the healthcare system, using the skills and resources of key partners and communities. This borough story has informed our 10-year Health and Wellbeing Strategy, focused on reducing health inequalities.