Shocking stats reveal almost half of children on one part of Merseyside are obese or overweight
Health officials are blaming poverty
Knowsley has the highest proportion of obese and overweight 10-and-11-year-olds in England, according to the latest NHS data. More than 30% of this age group are defined as obese which represents the second highest obesity rate in the country just behind Sandwell in the West Midlands on 31%.
An additional 14.9% of children were defined as overweight, meaning almost half (45.6%) of them are either obese or overweight – the highest proportion of obese and overweight children in England. Furthermore, Knowsley also has one of the highest rates of obese and overweight reception-aged children in the country.
More than 13% of four-and-five-year-olds were defined as obese in the 2023/24 academic year and a further 15.3% identified as overweight. The cumulative effect is a total of 28.7% of this childhood group were either obese or overweight – the second highest proportion in the country and the highest in Merseyside.
Since the general upturn in levels of obesity during the covid-19 pandemic, national and regional figures have continued to fall. However, rates of obesity in Knowsley, already some of the worst in the UK, continue to rise.
According to NHS health advice, obesity can have a seriously detrimental impact on physical and mental health and can even shorten a person’s life expectancy. The reasons for obesity are ‘complex’ but poverty is accepted as one of the main drivers.
The statistics on obesity in Knowsley are ‘bucking the trend’ and reveal a serious problem which was laid bare earlier this year by Knowsley Council’s Public Health Officer, Esther Hindley who drew attention to the issue of food poverty and the complexity of diet related health. Futhermore, Ms Hindley also highlighted the levels of deprivation in Knowsley and its effect on the price (and the availability) of healthy food.
Ms Hindley said: “Childhood obesity is sometimes thought of as a normal response to an abnormal environment.”
This sentiment was echoed by the Director of Public Health at Knowsley Council, Dr Sarah McNulty who cited analysis from the All Together Fairer report. It showed how the poorest fifth of UK households would have to spend 40% of their total income on food as opposed to 7% for the richest fifth.
Dr McNulty added: “It is a poverty issue. It is a deprivation issue and we need to acknowledge that when we’re doing the work. We really have to push the prevention agenda.”