Cheltenham Public Health Statistics
Life expectancy, early deaths, smoking, physical activity, weight, wellbeing and cancer screening in Cheltenham, compared with England, with child weight for every ward.
- 81.0 years life expectancy for men born in 2025
- 84.2 years for women
- 8 of 24 measures better than England
Public Health in Cheltenham
Public health is about how healthy a whole population is, rather than any one person: how long people live, how many die early, and the habits and conditions that shape both. This page brings together 24 measures for Cheltenham from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, each next to the figure for England.
Based on deaths in 2025, men in Cheltenham can expect to live to 81.0 and women to 84.2, against 80.0 and 83.8 across England. On 8 of the 24 measures Cheltenham does significantly better than England, and on none does it do significantly worse. The averages hide wide differences within the town: men in its most deprived areas live 12.2 years less than men in its least deprived, and the share of Year 6 children who are overweight or obese ranges from 16.7% in College to 43.6% in St Mark’s.
For health services, see GPs and pharmacies, dentists and A&E waiting times. For the wider picture behind these figures, see deprivation, child poverty and air quality.
Life Expectancy Since 2001
Each year's figure is worked out from the deaths registered that year, so it can rise and fall from one year to the next. The dip in 2020 reflects deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Life Expectancy
| Measure | Period | Cheltenham | England | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth (men) | 2025 | 81.0 years | 80.0 years | Better than England |
| Life expectancy at birth (women) | 2025 | 84.2 years | 83.8 years | Similar to England |
| Healthy life expectancy at birth (men) | 2019–23 | 67.4 years | 65.1 years | Better than England |
| Healthy life expectancy at birth (women) | 2019–23 | 69.5 years | 66.5 years | Better than England |
| Life expectancy at 65 (men) | 2025 | 19.6 years | 19.3 years | Similar to England |
| Life expectancy at 65 (women) | 2025 | 21.4 years | 21.7 years | Similar to England |
| Gap in life expectancy between the most and least deprived areas (men) | 2022–24 | 12.2 years | 10.4 years | Not compared |
| Gap in life expectancy between the most and least deprived areas (women) | 2022–24 | 9.8 years | 8.0 years | Not compared |
Deaths
| Measure | Period | Cheltenham | England | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deaths under 75, all causes | 2025 | 300 per 100,000 | 321 per 100,000 | Similar to England |
| Deaths under 75 from preventable causes | 2024 | 132 per 100,000 | 146 per 100,000 | Similar to England |
| Suicide rate | 2022–24 | 9.4 per 100,000 | 10.9 per 100,000 | Similar to England |
Lifestyle
| Measure | Period | Cheltenham | England | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults who smoke | 2025 | 9.5% | 9.5% | Similar to England |
| Adults who are physically active | 2024/25 | 72.0% | 68.0% | Similar to England |
| Adults who are overweight or obese | 2024/25 | 65.7% | 64.6% | Similar to England |
| Adults who are obese | 2024/25 | 24.6% | 26.6% | Similar to England |
| Hospital admissions caused by alcohol | 2023/24 | 477 per 100,000 | 612 per 100,000 | Better than England |
Children
| Measure | Period | Cheltenham | England | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reception children overweight or obese | 2024/25 | 20.6% | 23.5% | Better than England |
| Year 6 children overweight or obese | 2024/25 | 29.1% | 36.2% | Better than England |
Wellbeing and Prevention
| Measure | Period | Cheltenham | England | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adults with low happiness | 2022/23 | 5.6% | 8.8% | Similar to England |
| Adults with high anxiety | 2022/23 | 18.3% | 23.3% | Similar to England |
| Women screened for breast cancer (women) | 2025 | 74.4% | 71.7% | Better than England |
| Adults screened for bowel cancer | 2025 | 76.4% | 72.9% | Better than England |
| Households in fuel poverty | 2024 | 9.3% | 9.9% | Not compared |
| Deaths linked to air pollution | 2024 | 4.9% | 5.3% | Not compared |
"Better" or "Worse" means the difference from England is statistically significant. "Similar" means Cheltenham's figure is within the range expected by chance. Rates per 100,000 are adjusted for the age of the population, so a town with more older people can be compared fairly with England.
Child Weight by Ward
Across 2022/23–24/25, 30.7% of Year 6 children in Cheltenham were overweight or obese, against 36.2% across England. The figure varies widely between wards. Three school years are combined so that each ward has enough children measured.
| Ward | Overweight or Obese | Children | Compared With England |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Saints | 28.6% | 30 | Similar to England |
| Battledown | 22.2% | 40 | Better than England |
| Benhall, the Reddings & Fiddler's Green | 26.3% | 50 | Better than England |
| Charlton Kings | 19.6% | 50 | Better than England |
| Charlton Park | 25.9% | 35 | Better than England |
| College | 16.7% | 15 | Better than England |
| Hesters Way | 41.7% | 125 | Similar to England |
| Lansdown | 27.3% | 15 | Similar to England |
| Leckhampton | 21.1% | 40 | Better than England |
| Oakley | 36.2% | 85 | Similar to England |
| Park | 21.4% | 15 | Better than England |
| Pittville | 18.2% | 20 | Better than England |
| Prestbury | 28.6% | 40 | Better than England |
| Springbank | 43.6% | 120 | Worse than England |
| St Mark's | 43.6% | 85 | Similar to England |
| St Paul's | 33.3% | 50 | Similar to England |
| St Peter's | 42.5% | 85 | Similar to England |
| Swindon Village | 33.3% | 60 | Similar to England |
| Up Hatherley | 22.5% | 45 | Better than England |
| Warden Hill | 24.3% | 45 | Better than England |
The Children column counts Year 6 children who were overweight or obese over the three years, rounded to the nearest 5. In wards with few children, a handful either way changes the percentage a lot.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Life Expectancy in Cheltenham?
- Based on deaths in 2025, a boy born in Cheltenham can expect to live to 81.0 and a girl to 84.2, against 80.0 and 83.8 across England. These are averages for the whole town; the figures in the Life Expectancy table show how much they differ between its richest and poorest areas.
What Is Healthy Life Expectancy?
- It is the number of years a person can expect to live in good health, based on how people rate their own health in the census. The gap between healthy life expectancy and life expectancy is roughly the number of years spent in poor health.
What Does "Better," "Similar" or "Worse" Mean?
- It is the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities' own test of whether Cheltenham's figure is significantly different from England's, allowing for the margin of error in a town-sized sample. A small difference is often marked "Similar." Some measures have no better or worse direction and are not compared.
Why Are Some Figures Several Years Old?
- Each measure comes from a different survey or register, with its own publishing timetable. Some, such as healthy life expectancy and wellbeing, combine several years of data to give a reliable figure for a town. The Period column shows the years each figure covers.
Where Can I Find a GP or Get Health Advice?
- See GPs and pharmacies to find a practice near you. For urgent medical help that isn't an emergency, use NHS 111, and in an emergency call 999.
About This Data
Data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities — Public Health Profiles (Fingertips), published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Last updated 31 October 2026, checked monthly. Smoking figures come from the Annual Population Survey, physical activity and adult weight from Sport England's Active Lives Survey, child weight from the National Child Measurement Programme, and life expectancy, deaths and wellbeing from the Office for National Statistics. Life expectancy for the latest year is based on provisional death registrations.