WOMEN are expected to live almost seven years longer in Knutsford than nearby Mobberley.

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics have highlighted some major differences in life expectancy across wards in Cheshire East.

Women in Knutsford have a life expectancy of 86.4 years, compared with 79.8 in Mobberley.

The difference in the figures for men is smaller, with Knutsford men expected to live to 83.1 years of age, compared with 79.1 in Mobberley.

Women in High Legh have a life expectancy of 83.2 years, and men of 79.9 years.

Residents of the Farndon ward, nine miles south of Chester on the Welsh border, enjoy the highest life expectancy in the county – at 84 for men, and 91.2 for women.

But men in the Crewe Central and Ellesmere Port Town wards have the lowest life expectancy at just 72.6 – while women in Crewe Central have the county’s lowest life

expectancy of 76.8.

Other figgures show that women in Wilmslow East are expected to live 10 years longer than those in the Wilmslow Lacey Green ward, while men in Cheshire East can expect to live longest in Wynburnbury.

Meanwhile, Leighton near Crewe is the only ward in the two boroughs where men are expected to outlive women – with a life expectancy of 81.2 compared to 79.7.

CEC leader Cllr Rachel Bailey believes that education and the proposed Crewe HS2 hub, which received backing from the Department for Transport last month, can help to close the inequality gap in her borough.

“We have six main outcomes and one of those is improving the wellbeing of our residents,” she said.

“If we can educate people to live more healthily, if we can give information in relation to smoking cessation and control of alcohol, working with health, working with partners in education, that’s the key factor.

“And with regard to the case for a hub station in Crewe, an area that we’ve had to evidence is that social improvement.

“It’s about raising the aspiration of an area, and it’s a tactic that’s been applied for generations, but it’s improving that opportunity that brings improved wellbeing.”

Life expectancy figures for local wards – for men, followed by women

High Legh 79.9 - 83.2

Knutsford 83.1 - 86.4

Mobberley 79.1 - 79.8