The Latchmere Health Profile
The aim of the Latchmere health profile is to support local organisations and groups in the planning and delivery of services. It also provides a baseline analysis to support the assessment and evaluation of changes to health and wellbeing as changes occur within the locality including redevelopment and regeneration.
This profile draws on the lowest meaningful level of data available, in order to give the most representative picture of local health and wellbeing possible, using a range of local and national data sources. It draws on a breadth of indicators so as to capture the wider influences on the health of the community.
Latchmere has a young, ethnically diverse population with a high proportion of people who live alone. There is a large minority of people from black ethnic minority groups living in the area, Somali is the second most common language spoken amongst school children for instance. There is variation across the different parts of the ward in relation to deprivation, but nearly half of Latchmere residents live in some of the most deprived areas in the country.
A number of areas within the ward rank highly in relation to crime and community vulnerability to crime. The area is served by numerous buses and rail links around Clapham Junction and the majority of the ward is considered to have good or excellent access to public transport. There are numerous construction sites in the area, the Winstanley and York Road Estates regeneration project is ongoing with a planning application likely to be submitted in 2018/2019. The area around York Road is a TfL Air Quality Focus Area, due to high levels of air pollutants; two schools in the ward are also in areas that breach air quality limit values.
Over half of households in Latchmere have dependent children and over a third of children living in the ward are living in poverty. There are a high number of lone-parent households and half of lone-parent households are not in employment. Levels of childhood excess weight are higher than for Wandsworth, although certainly amongst younger children i.e. reception age, there is an encouraging downward trend. Children and young people living in the ward are more likely to be admitted to hospital with an injury compared to Wandsworth as a whole.
Despite variation in rates of coverage for childhood immunisations in early years by the time childrem are five years old coverage by GP practices in Latchmere is generally good. The majority of children in the ward attend state-maintained schools. There is variation in the student profile and educational attainment of the local primary schools and the secondary academy. However, a higher proportion of children are reaching expected levels in three of the local primary schools and secondary school students achieve slightly better average results at GCSE compared to Wandsworth average.
The average life expectancy of men and women living in Latchmere is lower than the Wandsworth average and both men and women spend fewer years in good health. The health of the adult population varies across the different GP practices in the ward, reflecting pockets of affluence and the influence of commuting workers who may access primary care in the ward but not be resident. The east and west of the ward are the least active areas in Wandsworth.
Deaths from all causes are higher than would be expected; there are also higher levels of death from heart disease and cancer. Deaths from stroke and chronic respiratory diseases are similar to what we expect for the borough as a whole. Nearly half of all housing in Latchmere is social housing, and 30% of all households are estimated to be overcrowded. A higher proportion of people are unemployed and long-term unemployed than for Wandsworth average, and a third of households claim housing benefit.
Nearly 600 people aged over 65 live alone in Latchmere. When compared with Wandsworth, levels of dementia, and emergency and planned hospital procedures for this age group tend to be lower or similar. However, men and women spend fewer years in good health than for Wandsworth overall. This is likely due to the cumulative effect of poorer health and lifestyle factors seen in much of the adult population. Much of the data that pertain to older people’s health (e.g. stroke and heart disease) are also pertinent to adults.
Read the full document: Latchmere Health Profile 2018