Read: New research underlines need to ensure women in poorest areas benefit from levelling up agenda
The urgent need to level up the most disadvantaged areas of the country, particularly targeting women experiencing inequality, was highlighted by new research which shows that in 2021, a woman in the North East of England was 1.7 times more likely to die early as a result of suicide, addiction or murder by a partner or family member than the rest of England and Wales, an increase of 15 per cent since 2018.
The shocking statistics feature in a report published this week by Agenda Alliance, a partnership working to make a difference to women at the sharp end of inequality and Changing Lives, a charity working with women at risk in the North East. The research was undertaken to better understand their lives and needs and covered some of the poorest regions in the country including Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland and coastal areas. It found that the average age of women accessing their services had dropped by ten years, from 47 years old prior to 2020 to just 37. The typical life expectancy of a woman born in the UK is 83 years old.
The reasons behind early death can be complex but the report found that women in the area face a range of life challenges, including domestic abuse, debts and poverty, mental ill-health and poor health generally, housing problems and substance misuse which contribute to shortened life expectancy. Its research also found that these issues have all been significantly exacerbated by the impact of austerity, the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis on local services.
The report includes a specific survey of disadvantaged women and it’s clear that women with multiple unmet needs are particularly vulnerable. Seventy-two per cent of the women surveyed said their health and wellbeing is being directly impacted by the cost of living crisis, with 62 per cent reporting that they had missed meals and stopped buying essentials. Forty-three per cent said they used food banks and 45 per cent went somewhere outside their home to keep warm. A major concern was the difficulties many at-risk women had accessing mental health services. Between 2021-2022 in Northumberland and Tyne and Wear 81 per cent of women – over 145,000 - who needed mental health support did not get it.
There is also a clear impact on achievement and access to opportunity, notably on low literacy levels, with 62 per cent of women surveyed having no educational qualifications beyond GCSE and six per cent having no qualifications at all. The average reading age in the North East and Yorkshire is 14 years old, two years below the age at which the NHS pitches its information. Poor literacy and numerical levels and digital exclusion play a significant part in preventing these women from accessing health services and education. Sixty four per cent struggled to access benefits because of the paperwork involved.
The report calls for disadvantaged women to be prioritised in the levelling up agenda, with a focus on revitalising public services so that they are fit for purpose. It recommends the setting up of a governmental taskforce to tackle and end linked social, economic and health inequalities and the inclusion of disadvantaged women to help shape appropriate services, especially for mental health, domestic abuse and poverty with a particular focus on stopping addiction being used as a barrier to mental health.
