Obesity Rates by Region in England: Where Levels Are Highest and Why

• Full regional breakdown for children, with every figure carrying its data year
• Explains why adult obesity is published by local authority rather than by region, and what the range actually is
• Shows where the north south divide holds and the one region that breaks it
• Online consultation with UK registered prescribers, with clinical assessment before any supply

Obesity is not spread evenly across England, and the pattern is sharper than most people expect. Between the local authority with the highest adult obesity prevalence and the one with the least, there is a gap of 26.9 percentage points.

What that pattern is not, quite, is a north south divide. It looks like one until you reach London, which sits near the top for childhood obesity while being nowhere near the north. The factor that explains all of it is deprivation, and geography is the shape deprivation happens to take on a map.

This page gives the regional figures that are published, explains why adult regional figures are not, and sets out what the variation is actually tracking.

Key things to know

• Adult obesity ranges from 11.0 per cent to 37.9 per cent across upper tier local authorities in England, a gap of 26.9 percentage points
• Childhood obesity by region is published, and in 2023 to 2024 it was highest in the north east for year 6 children at 24.5 per cent
• London sits near the top for year 6 obesity at 24.0 per cent, which breaks any simple north south reading
• Adults in the most deprived areas are close to twice as likely to be obese as those in the least deprived, at 37.4 per cent against 19.8 per cent
• The deprivation gap in children widens from 6.9 percentage points at reception age to 16.1 by year 6
• Treatment suitability depends on an individual clinical assessment, and results vary between individuals

Which region has the highest obesity in England?

For children, the north east has the highest year 6 obesity prevalence in England at 24.5 per cent, and the West Midlands has the highest reception prevalence at 10.9 per cent. These figures highlight the importance of addressing obesity levels at a regional and national level to create health promoting environments that support healthier lifestyles. The higher rate of obesity in these regions contributes to increased health risks, including reduced life expectancy, especially among adults aged 45 to 64. The proportion of children affected by obesity in these areas has been identified as a significant public health concern, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions to improve consumption habits and physical activity among reception aged children and older groups.

Why there is no equivalent adult answer

Adult obesity is not published as a regional breakdown in the official statistical commentary. It is published by upper tier local authority and by deprivation instead.

That is a deliberate choice rather than an oversight. Variation between local authorities inside a single region is often larger than the difference between two regions, so a regional average hides more than it shows. An area with 37.9 per cent obesity and an area with 11.0 per cent can sit in the same part of the country.

So if you have been searching for adult obesity rates by region and finding very little, that is why. The figure that exists, and the one that answers the question better, is the local authority figure.

Childhood obesity by region in England

Regional figures for children come from measuring the same population twice, six years apart, in reception and in year 6.

Reception children, ages 4 to 5

In 2023 to 2024, obesity among reception children was highest in the West Midlands at 10.9 per cent, followed by the north east at 10.8 per cent, Yorkshire and the Humber at 10.7 per cent and the north west at 10.1 per cent.

It was least common in the east of England at 8.4 per cent, the south east at 8.6 per cent and the south west at 8.8 per cent.

Year 6 children, ages 10 to 11

The same year, obesity among year 6 children was highest in the north east at 24.5 per cent, the West Midlands at 24.4 per cent, London at 24.0 per cent, Yorkshire and the Humber at 23.6 per cent and the north west at 23.3 per cent.

It was least common in the south west at 19.1 per cent, the south east at 19.2 per cent and the east of England at 20.0 per cent.

The regional picture in one table

All figures are percentages of children measured in 2023 to 2024. Anyone whose own weight is the reason they came looking at these numbers will find support for long term weight change more useful than a regional average.

Adult obesity by local authority

This is where the adult variation is published, and the spread is wide. In 2023 to 2024, 64.5 per cent of adults were overweight or living with obesity, with men more likely than women to be classified as overweight or living with obesity. The North West region has one of the highest combined overweight or obesity rates at approximately 70 per cent, while London has the lowest mean body mass index (BMI) at 26.6 kg/m² and the lowest obesity prevalence at 21 per cent. The North East has the highest mean BMI at 28.7 kg/m². These figures highlight significant regional disparities influenced by factors such as deprivation and lifestyle.

Women tend to have a slightly lower prevalence of being overweight or obese compared to men, but obesity still poses a substantial health risk for both. People living in deprived areas experience much higher rates of obesity; 71.2 per cent of adults in these areas are overweight or obese, with obesity prevalence reaching 37.4 per cent compared to 19.8 per cent in the least deprived areas. This social gradient in obesity prevalence underscores the importance of targeted public health interventions to support those most affected.

The range across local authorities

Across upper tier local authorities in England, prevalence of overweight including obesity ranged from 42.6 per cent to 77.2 per cent, a gap of 34.6 percentage points. Obesity alone ranged from 11.0 per cent to 37.9 per cent, a gap of 26.9 percentage points.

Put another way, obesity prevalence in the highest local authority is more than three times that of the area at the other end of the range. No regional average comes close to expressing that.

Why local authority is the more useful unit

A region is an administrative container holding several million people and a great deal of internal difference. A single region can contain both coastal towns with high deprivation and prosperous commuter districts.

Averaging them produces a number that describes nobody. The local authority figure is closer to the population you actually live among, which is why public health planning uses it.

How to look up your own area

1. Find the official local statistics tool for England rather than a news summary
2. Search the adult obesity prevalence indicator by your upper tier local authority
3. Check the data year shown against the indicator, since local figures update on their own cycle
4. Compare against the England figure rather than against a neighbouring area
5. Note whether the figure is self reported or measured, since that changes what it means

Is there a north south divide in obesity?

Partly. The pattern holds for most regions and then breaks in one place, which tells you something important about what is really being measured.

What supports the divide

Among year 6 children, four of the five regions with the highest obesity prevalence are northern or midland: the north east at 24.5 per cent, the West Midlands at 24.4, Yorkshire and the Humber at 23.6 and the north west at 23.3. The three with the least are all southern: the south west at 19.1, the south east at 19.2 and the east of England at 20.0.

At reception age the same pattern appears, with the West Midlands, north east, Yorkshire and the Humber and north west above the rest.

What breaks it

London. Year 6 obesity in London was 24.0 per cent in 2023 to 2024, placing it third of all regions and within half a percentage point of the north east.

London is not northern, is not deprived on average, and is one of the more affluent regions by most measures. If obesity followed a simple geographic line, London would sit near the south east at 19.2 per cent. It does not.

What the exception tells you

London contains some of the most deprived local areas in England alongside some of the wealthiest. A regional average conceals that entirely, and the childhood obesity figure reflects the deprived parts rather than the regional average income.

That is the clearest evidence in the whole dataset that the driver is deprivation rather than latitude. The north south pattern is real, and it exists because deprivation is distributed unevenly across England, not because of anything about the north itself. For any one person none of it decides anything, since prescription options for obesity are assessed on individual clinical criteria rather than on where someone lives.

Obesity and deprivation in England

Deprivation is the strongest and most consistent pattern in the data, larger than any regional difference. It is closely linked to ethnicity, with 73.4 per cent of Black adults and 65.7 per cent of White British adults classified as overweight or obese. Obesity significantly impacts health, reducing life expectancy by three to ten years and increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. The economic burden is substantial, costing the NHS around £5 billion annually and the UK economy approximately £40 billion in 2022. These health and economic impacts underscore the urgent need for targeted interventions in deprived communities to reduce obesity rates and associated chronic illnesses.

Adults

In 2023 to 2024, 71.2 per cent of adults in the most deprived areas were overweight or obese and 37.4 per cent were obese. In the least deprived areas the figures were 59.4 per cent and 19.8 per cent.

That is a gap of 11.8 percentage points on overweight or obesity and 17.6 points on obesity alone.

Children

Among reception children, 12.9 per cent in the most deprived areas were obese against 6.0 per cent in the least deprived. By year 6 the figures were 29.2 per cent and 13.0 per cent.

Why the gap widens with age

The deprivation gap in children more than doubles between reception and year 6, from 6.9 percentage points to 16.1.

Whatever produces it is therefore not fixed at birth and not settled by age five. It accumulates across the primary school years, which is when children gain independent food choices, spending money and longer sedentary periods, and when the differences between areas start to compound.

Why is obesity higher in some regions?

The published data shows association rather than proving cause, so what follows are the factors that vary alongside the pattern.

• The price of calories. Energy dense food is generally cheaper per calorie than fresh food, so a tight food budget pushes towards higher energy density
• Food environment. The number and type of food outlets differs sharply between areas, and so does the distance to a full supermarket
• Work patterns. Shift work, long hours and irregular schedules make regular meals and planned activity harder to sustain
• Physical environment. Access to safe walking routes, parks and affordable leisure facilities varies by area
• Housing and time. Cooking from scratch requires kitchen space, equipment, storage and time, none of which are evenly distributed
• Age profile. Obesity prevalence rises with age through most of adulthood, so an area with an older population will show a higher figure for that reason alone

None of these is a personal failing, and none of them is fixed. They explain why a map looks the way it does, not what any individual can or cannot achieve.

The north east and the midlands

The north east and the midlands are consistently highlighted in obesity statistics for England due to their notably high prevalence rates. These regions show significant challenges related to overweight and obesity, influenced by factors such as socioeconomic deprivation, lifestyle patterns, and access to health-promoting resources. In particular, the north east has the highest year 6 obesity prevalence at 24.5 per cent and the second highest reception obesity rate at 10.8 per cent, reflecting a persistent public health concern across childhood age groups. Meanwhile, the West Midlands leads with the highest reception obesity prevalence at 10.9 per cent and the second highest year 6 obesity rate at 24.4 per cent, emphasising the need for targeted interventions.

The north east

The north east had the highest year 6 obesity prevalence of any English region in 2023 to 2024 at 24.5 per cent, and the second highest reception prevalence at 10.8 per cent.

It appears at or near the top of both age groups, which is a more consistent signal than a single measurement. Local authority figures within the region vary considerably, so a regional figure should not be read as describing any particular town or county.

The midlands

The West Midlands had the highest reception obesity prevalence in England at 10.9 per cent and the second highest year 6 prevalence at 24.4 per cent.

Like the north east, it sits high at both ages, which is a more reliable signal than a single year in a single age group would be.

What a regional figure does not tell you about yourself

A prevalence figure describes a population. It says nothing about any individual in it, including you.

Your own numbers, in order

1. Calculate your body mass index: 18.5 to 24.9 is healthy weight, 25 to 29.9 overweight, 30 or above obesity, 40 or above severe obesity
2. Measure your waist at the same point each time and divide it by your height
3. NICE recommends waist-to-height ratio in adults with a body mass index below 35, classing 0.4 to 0.49 as healthy central adiposity, 0.5 to 0.59 as increased and 0.6 or above as high
4. Check whether the lower thresholds apply, since NICE classes 23 to 27.4 as overweight and 27.5 or above as obesity for people of South Asian, Chinese, other Asian, Middle Eastern, Black African or African Caribbean family background
5. Record both figures monthly and judge any change over four weeks

Who licensed treatment is for

Prescribing begins at a body mass index of 30, or at 27 where a weight related condition is present. Orlistat 120 mg begins at 30, or at 28 alongside weight related risk factors.

Response is reviewed against roughly a 5 per cent reduction, at 12 weeks for orlistat and at six months for the weekly injections. Treatment suitability depends on an individual clinical assessment, and this medicine should only be used under the supervision of an appropriately qualified prescriber. Where a weekly dose is missed, the patient information for that product sets out how to handle it, and two doses are never taken together to catch up.

What treatment achieves in trials

In a 72 week trial of 2,539 adults, average weight reduction with a licensed weekly injection reached 22.5 per cent at the highest dose studied, with waist circumference falling 19.9 cm against 3.4 cm on placebo. In a separate 68 week trial of 1,961 adults on a different weekly injection, average reduction was 14.9 per cent, with waist down 13.5 cm against 4.1 cm.

Each figure belongs to the medicine studied rather than transferring across treatments. An oral licensed treatment studied in 307 adults over 64 weeks produced an average reduction of 13.6 per cent against 2.2 per cent on placebo, and daily GLP-1 tablet treatment suits some people better than a weekly injection for reasons of preference rather than effectiveness.

Red flags and when to seek advice

Speak to a healthcare professional if any of the following apply.

• Weight rising steadily despite sustained changes to what you eat
• Weight loss you cannot account for
• Excessive thirst, passing urine far more often than usual, or unexplained tiredness
• Breathlessness on mild exertion, or swelling of the ankles
• Persistent abdominal swelling, or a change in bowel habit lasting more than a few weeks
• Eating patterns that feel outside your control, or distress about food affecting daily life

Medical Disclaimer

This page is general information, not medical advice. Prescription treatments require a clinical assessment. Speak to a healthcare professional about your own circumstances. For further information on obesity compared and related health improvement strategies, including how to calculate body mass index (BMI) and understand weight measurements, consult resources from Public Health England and the Health Survey for England. These sources provide estimates and trends at both national and local levels, highlighting disparities linked to education, government policies, and the creation of health promoting environments. Addressing obesity is a complex public health concern involving national and local action plans that focus on healthy eating, physical activity, and reducing chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, which are associated with excess weight and severely obese individuals. The adult population's health can be improved by promoting sport England initiatives and supporting adults living with overweight and obesity through individual level interventions informed by data collected from self reported height and BMI assessments. Understanding regional overweight and obesity statistics for England helps to target local action and create effective health promoting environments.