Live a Healthier Life
Wellbeing and Equality of Health for Residents
Helping you to better health and longer life
Pendle Council and our partners aim to work with all Pendle residents to improve health experiences for everyone.
We need to do this because we know that, generally, the health of people in Pendle is not as good as for other parts of England .
We also know that within Pendle there are big differences in health and life expectancy depending on where you live.
What is health
A person's health and well being can be affected by their social and economic status, lifestyle, geographical area in which they live, age, disability etc.
Health inequality is the difference in health experience and health outcomes between different groups of people.
Out of 354 local authorities in England Pendle is now the 44th most deprived. This has an effect on health outcomes and life expectancy.
Each year the public health observatory publishes a health profile for Pendle
Health Inequality in Pendle - our challenge
- In 2008 Pendle's death rate froom coronary heart disease, stroke and related conditions for the under 75's was 88.7 per 100,000 population. Whilst this has improved since 2003/05 when it was 112.5 per 100,000 it remains above the national rate of 86
- Pendle ranked the second highest in Lancashire for infant mortality with a rate of 7.8 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2005/07. The Lancashire average is 5.4 and the national average is 5
- Life expectancy at birth for both males and females is below the national average. In 2007 female life expectancy in Pendle stood at 80.5 which is unchanged from the position in 2004/06. Male life expectancy at birth over the same period has increased slightly from 76 to 76.1. We are ranked 8th in Lancashire
- Since 1996/8 the suicide rate in Pendle has been above the national average. In 2006/08 this dropped just below the national average of 7.9 to 6.2 suicides per 100,000
Health in Pendle - our response
We are committed to reducing health inequalities in Pendle.
Our Sustainable Community Strategy sets out how we aim to make a difference and identifies 6 priority areas of work which will help us to do this.
We recognise that we need to work in partnership in order to make a difference.
With our partners we have made a pledge to improve health and well being for all Pendle residents:
"We care deeply about improving the health and wellbeing of people in East Lancashire and are committed to making a difference. Working in partnership, we will reduce health inequalities by making measurable improvements and by rasiing aspirations in our local communities. We will work together to save a million years of life in East Lancashire by 2011"
In April 2008 NHS East Lancashire launched its health inequalities strategy and the Save a Million Years of Life (SMYL) campaign. This campaign identifies the same 6 priority areas that are contained in Pendle's Sustainable Community Strategy.
These priority areas are: 
- Infant mortality
- Cardiovascular disease
- Alcohol misuse
- Drug misuse
- Tobacco
- Geographical inequalities
In addition to these Pendle has identified 2 local priorities which are:
- Suicide prevention
- Fuel poverty
We are also committed to:
To find out more information about each of these areas please click on the links above.
For lots more information, tips and advice visit
Help Yourself to Health
Of course there is a great deal each one of us can do to improve our general health and wellbeing by making small, simple lifestyle changes.
If you need help and inspiration with changes to your lifestyle, or if you are just interested to know how you are doing, why not try an on line Lifecheck - a simple questionnaire which is easy to do and could be the help you need.
All NHS LifeChecks are confidential. No one can see or read your answers. You can print off your results if wish to show them to a health professional or someone you trust.
If you would like to check how you are doing and you are an adult over 40, a teenager between 12-15 years or parent or carer for a baby NHS Lifecheck has been devleoped to help you to do this.
Change 4 Life 
Need inspiration, tips and advice on how to make the small changes that will help to make a difference to yours and your families lives?
Pendle Council along with our partners Pendle Leisure Trust are proud supporters of Change 4 Life - why don't you join us and sign up today.
Making a Change4Life doesn't need to be difficult. With a little help, it can be really rewarding and fun!
Check out our events calendar for upcoming events.
Further information
For general health and wellbeing advice try NHS Choices or the British Heart Foundation website
And for healthy eating advice and 5 a day tips and recipes try the 5 a day and Food Standards agency Eatwell websites
If there is any health related information you would like to see on our website please let us know. You can contact us by telephoning (01282) 661199 or by emailing rebecca.sutcliffe@pendle.gov.uk
