School results, smoking rates, shop closures? New statistics tool helps you compare local areas in t

If you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relative poverty.

Yet even among this If you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relativIf you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relativIf you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relativIf you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relative poverty.

Yet even among this e poverty.

Yet even among this e poverty.

Yet even among this e poverty.

Yet even among this If you’re not a die-hard numbers person, government statistics can often go right over your head. That is, unless the data is easy to access and directly speaks to your everyday life.

A new online service from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) aims to facilitate just that. Launched in March 2024, the Explore Local Statistics service collates 57 local measurements, across topics ranging from health and school results to smoking and income levels.

You simply input your postcode or the name of an area you are thinking of moving to, say, and you can explore, download and map all kinds of statistics that tell you something about what living there is like.

The ONS has highlighted that data published by public bodies is often difficult to access for officials, let alone ordinary residents who are simply curious about their local areas. This new service, by contrast, makes it easy.

A lollipop man on a street.
Local statistics are vital to understanding your local area. Serge Cornu|Shutterstock
Geographical inequalities
What do Kingston upon Hull, a port city towards the north of England, and Worthing, a 270 mile drive to the south, have in common? The ONS tool will tell you that, among all UK local authorities, they share the highest percentages of premises with very fast broadband speeds.

Torbay and Blackpool, meanwhile, two westerly coastal locations separated by the whole of Wales, rank among the highest in terms of truancy.

Such comparisons quickly highlight long-standing geographical inequalities across the social and economic landscape of the UK. The average worker in Wandsworth, a borough in south-west London, gets paid almost double that of a worker in West Devon.

The average male born in Rutland, in the east Midlands, between 2018-2019, is anticipated to live 74.7 years. In Blackpool, that figure drops to a shocking 53.5 years.

In the east London borough of Tower Hamlets, male life expectancy increased by 11 years from 2011-13, perhaps through gentrification and the displacement of traditional communities.

But in places including Warwickshire, in the west Midlands and North East Lincolnshire, it is falling. This chimes with research showing that life expectancy is generally declining in the UK but there are large geographical variations in how long people are expected to live.

More broadly, the service allows comparisons between the UK’s four nations.Homicide rates are 30% greater in England than they are in Wales (10.3 homicides per 1 million people recorded in England in 2020-23; 7.9 in Wales). The 2022-23 economic inactivity rate (percentage of people aged 16 to 64 who are not in employment and are not actively seeking work) is greatest in Northern Ireland (25.0), followed by Wales (22.9), Scotland (22.1) and England (21.1).

A street in Wales.
The service allows for national, regional and loca-authority level comparisons across the UK. Thamrongsak.S|Shutterstock
What the data does not show
One useful feature is the ability to compare like with like. A local politician, for instance, might explore how their area is performing relative to others that are demographically or geographically close.

The estimated gross disposable income in Bradford, in the north of England, is about 25% lower than the average for all local authorities in the UK. That average, however, includes London’s most wealthy areas – the City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster…

Comparing Bradford with the super-rich is arguably not as meaningful as comparing Bradford with local authorities in the UK’s industrial heartlands – the Scottish Lowlands, the north-east of England, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire, south Wales – which the ONS describe as low-ranking in terms of healthy life expectancy, domestic electricity consumption and educational qualifications and high-ranking in the proportion of children in relative poverty.

Yet even among this