Shocking figures show one in five people in Blackpool have been diagnosed with depression by their GP

An annual review of the health of Blackpool residents also reveals smoking and drug-taking continue to take their toll on the population.

The Annual Health Report by director of public health Dr Arif Rajpura marks 10 years since public health was taken out of the NHS and became the responsibility of Blackpool Council.

Deprivation and poor housing is highlighted as the underlying cause for many of the issues which mean people living in the town start to suffer from chronic ill-health in their 50s.

Figures from the report show 21 per cent of people in Blackpool were diagnosed with depression in 2022/23 compared to just over 10 per cent in 2013/14. The numbers have also doubled nationally - from 6.5 per cent to 13.2 per cent in England over the same time period.

Drug related deaths are around four times higher in Blackpool than the rest of the country - 19.5 per 100,000 of the population in 2020/22 (up from 13.7 in 2011/13) compared to 5.2 per 100,000 in England.

Deaths due to alcohol are also higher than the national level at 24 per 100,000 population in 2022 compared to 14.5 in England.

Smoking levels have dropped to just under 19 per cent of the population lighting up in 2022 compared to 27 per cent in 2018, but are still higher than the national level of 12 per cent in England.

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Looking ahead to the next 10 years the report warns: "Supporting people with substance misuse issues to live fulfilling lives and reducing the potential future burden of ill-health by intervening earlier will be extremely important.

"Poor mental health will continue to be a particular concern in Blackpool with significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety and serious mental illness identified by Blackpool GPs compared with England as a whole.

"The prescribing of medication, such as antidepressants, is also extremely high in Blackpool and tragically the rate of suicides is significantly higher than in England."

Dr Rajpura says a 10 year fully funded health plan, backed by all political sides, is needed to reduce the health inequalities blighting Blackpool.

He says in the report: "I’d like to see more money coming into public health. That would be fantastic. Some of the cuts that we’ve had have been quite deep, in the public health budget and the council budget as well."I would love to see local government appropriately resourced, especially reversing the disproportionate cuts that have happened to places like Blackpool compared to more affluent areas."