Institutional development · Research, innovation and assessment · United Kingdom
Study publicised by Liverpool finds North–South death gap for 25–49s tripled since 1981
Research publicised by the University of Liverpool reports that adults aged 25–49 in northern England had death rates 42% above the South in 2024, up from 13% in 1981.
Why it matters: Public health researchers studying regional inequality in England have a new Lancet Public Health estimate of the mortality gap among adults aged 25–49.
According to research published in The Lancet Public Health and publicised by the University of Liverpool, death rates among adults aged 25–49 in 2024 were 42% higher in the North of England than in the South.
The same research reports that the equivalent gap in 1981 was 13%.
The university said this means the relative North–South gap for this age group has more than tripled over four decades.
Editor’s view
Scott James, Research and Innovation Editor
Researchers and policymakers concerned with adults aged 25–49 in England now have a published estimate that the North–South mortality gap in this group rose from 13% in 1981 to 42% in 2024, according to the study in The Lancet Public Health.
