Statistical News Release - Life Expectancy

Statistics published today by the National Records of Scotland indicate that life expectancy for those born in 2015-2017 varies between Scotland’s council areas by up to 7.2 years for males and 5.0 years for females. Similar to the national figures published in September, life expectancy decreased or stalled over the last year in 20 out of 32 areas for males and in 18 out of 32 areas for females. The report also breaks down life expectancy by health board, Scottish Parliamentary constituency, urban-rural classification and deprivation

The latest statistics covering 2015-2017 show:

• Life expectancy was highest in East Renfrewshire where males born in 2015-2017 could expect to live for 80.5 years and females, for 83.7 years.
• Glasgow City had the lowest life expectancy for those born in 2015-2017 at 73.3 years for males and 78.7 years for females.
• Average life expectancy at birth for all of Scotland was 77.0 years for males and 81.1 years for females.
• Between 2014-2016 and 2015-2017, life expectancy in Scotland as a whole fell by approximately 0.1 years for both males and females. Life expectancy also fell or stalled in 20 council areas for males and 18 council areas for females.
• Deprivation is strongly linked to life expectancy. In 2015-2017, males born in the 10% most deprived areas within Scotland could expect to live 13 years fewer than those in the 10% least deprived area. For females, the gap was 9.6 years.

Notes To Editors

1. The National Records of Scotland (NRS) is a non-ministerial department of the devolved Scottish It is responsible for producing statistics on Scotland’s population.
2. Today’s publication summarises the latest life expectancy for Scottish areas published by NRS. The figures cover a 3-year rolling period, 2015-2017, and can be used to estimate the average number of years a person would live if he or she experienced the age-specific mortality rates of the given area and time period for the rest of their life. The full publication can be accessed from the Life Expectancy section of the NRS website.
3. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) have published life expectancy and healthy life expectancy statistics for areas in the UK, including local authority area level for Scotland. The ONS publication be accessed from the Health and Life Expectancy section of the ONS website.
4. Information about the methodology for estimating life expectancy can be found in the Methodology Guide on the NRS website.

1. A more comprehensive breakdown of Healthy life expectancy statistics for areas within Scotland is currently planned to be published by National Records of Scotland (NRS) in early 2019.

2. The UK Statistics Authority (UKSA) has designated this publication as National Statistics, in line with the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 and signifying compliance with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.