Council’s five-year plan reveals reality of life beside the seaside

DESPITE its image as a pleasant seaside resort a shocking new report on Scarborough says life expectancy in the borough is less than the rest of England for both men and women.

The town has attracted £100m of investment in the past decade but this financial boom is not mirrored in the health of residents.

As well as poor longevity rates the borough council – in its corporate plan for the next five years – says alcohol-related deaths for men, and deaths from chronic liver disease are also higher than the national and regional averages.

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The aim now, says the council, is to reduce alcohol and drugs misuse by promoting responsible drinking and retailing of alcohol and to reduce the consequent hospital admissions.

Councillors now want to encourage more people to get involved in leisure, sport and cultural activities as part of healthy and active lifestyles.

Councillor David Jeffels, cabinet member for tourism and culture, said he was shocked by the figures and would be urging colleagues in the council, North Yorkshire County Council and the local NHS Trust to get to grips with the situation.

He said: “People probably associate living by the seaside with a healthy lifestyle but this report has shown that this is not so with people living two to three years less than in the rest of the country.

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“The reasons for it are – inevitably – quite complicated, but I shall be calling for a major educational programme to tackle the problems this report has highlighted,” he added.

“I would suggest we need to get into the schools early and talk to primary school pupils from eight-years-old upwards about why it is important to have a healthy lifestyle.

“These are disturbing figures and we must find ways of reversing the trends outlined.”

The report, which goes before the full council for approval in July, has been drawn up following public consultation and highlights the need to improve employment opportunities.

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Chief executive Jim Dillon said: “The aim is to attract more investment and to encourage the creation not just of more jobs and an improved infrastructure, but of better quality jobs throughout the borough.”

Currently the borough also has business start-up and survival rates below national and regional levels says the report.

However, the council still intends to develop stronger links with the University of Hull’s Scarborough campus and the business community.

Officials say the intention is to try to stimulate research and exploit innovative ways to maximise technology spin-off and to develop new enterprises in the area.

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The report reveals that the average weekly wage in the area is below the national average.

“Eighteen per cent of our population live in the most deprived wards in the country, suffering from a range of problems, such as poverty, poor health and poor housing.”

The council plan aims to ensure there is maximum take-up of housing and council tax benefits to help alleviate the situation and to work with other agencies on debt advice.

Other issues raised in the report include reducing anti-social behaviour by providing opportunities for young people to take part in positive activities and by providing more youth shelters.

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The council says it also wants to see as many as 406 affordable homes become available in the area by 2016.

The council adds that it has now completed a £3.82m investment plan for upgrading parks and open spaces in the borough.

A wetland project at the Cayton and Flixton Carrs has attracted £1.8m of European Union subsidies for local farmers.

And in another blow for the borough, NHS York and North Yorkshire’s latest figures reveal that more than 25 per cent of the adult population in Scarborough are smokers compared with just 13.1 per cent in Harrogate.