Black Country neighbourhood named worst place to grow old in England in 2026 study

Wolverhampton has been named the worst place to grow old in England, according to a new study comparing 32 locations on factors including health in later life, walking access, public transport and green space.

The research, carried out by My Health Protected, ranked Wolverhampton 32nd out of 32 areas, giving the city an overall score of just 26.94 out of 100.

The findings placed Wolverhampton at the bottom of the national table, behind Doncaster, which came 31st with 28.96 points, and Salford, which finished 30th with 33.36 points.

The study found that Wolverhampton recorded 2,831.66 falls-related hospital spells per 100,000 people aged 65 and over.

It also had a healthy life expectancy estimate of just 7.60 years from age 65, among the figures considered in the research.

England's best and worst places to grow old

Westminster was named the best place to grow old in England, scoring 68.30 out of 100. Its strong walking and public transport connectivity scores helped it secure the top position.

Plymouth came second with 62.01 points, followed by Leeds in third place with 59.88.

The full top five were:

1. Westminster – 68.30 points
2. Plymouth – 62.01 points
3. Leeds – 59.88 points
4. Portsmouth – 56.77 points
5. Brighton and Hove – 54.07 points

At the other end of the rankings, Wolverhampton finished bottom.

The five lowest-ranked locations were:

1. [Location not provided in the published information]
2. [Location not provided in the published information]
3. Salford – 33.36 points
4. Doncaster – 28.96 points
5. Wolverhampton – 26.94 points

How did the other areas perform?

Plymouth secured second place after recording the lowest rates of falls-related hospital spells and hip fracture admissions among people aged 65 and over.

Leeds took third place, recording the largest total area of parks and play areas in the study, at 8.67 square kilometres, alongside a healthy life expectancy estimate of 10.18 years from age 65.

Portsmouth finished fourth with 56.77 points, while Brighton and Hove completed the top five. Brighton and Hove recorded the highest healthy life expectancy figure among the locations compared, at 11.86 years from age 65.

Among the lowest-ranked areas, Doncaster scored poorly for walking and public transport connectivity, while Salford recorded a healthy life expectancy estimate of 8.64 years from age 65.

What factors were considered?

The study compared 32 English locations using seven measures covering the health and wellbeing of older people.

These included:

• Healthy life expectancy from age 65.
• Falls-related hospital spells.
• Walking connectivity.
• Public transport connectivity.
• Park and play-area provision.
• Hip fracture hospital admissions.
• Dementia diagnosis rates.

Each measure was scored out of 100 and given a different weighting. Healthy life expectancy accounted for 25 per cent of the overall score, while falls, walking and public transport each accounted for 15 per cent.

Parks and play areas, hip fracture admissions and dementia diagnosis rates each accounted for 10 per cent.

Patrick Baxter, founder of My Health Protected, said: "Growing older well depends on more than a single health measure. Being able to reach everyday services and stay connected to the local community also matters.

"This ranking brings those factors together and shows how much the picture varies between places. It should be a starting point for questions about local provision, rather than a prediction of how any one person will experience later life."

The research used data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the Department for Transport's 2025 connectivity metrics.

The researchers stressed that the index does not predict how any individual will experience later life. They also noted that the parks measure was based on total area rather than provision per resident, and that missing data was given a score of zero.

However, the findings leave Wolverhampton at the bottom of the 2026 rankings, highlighting the challenges identified by the research around health, mobility and access to facilities for older people.