Town below average in weekly exercise ‘Deeply concerning’ anti-depressant use

BARNSLEY residents are less active compared to regional and national averages.

The percentage of adults – aged 19 and above – who achieve 150 minutes of physical activity per week stands at 60.9 per cent.

It is less than the regional average of 64.6 per cent and 66 per cent nationally.

A council report said: “All of the 21 wards in Barnsley have a higher rate of obesity than England’s rate.

“The rates of excess weight in children in Barnsley are 18 per cent for four to five-year-olds, and 32.1 per cent for ten to 11-year-olds.

“Active transport modes such as walking and cycling offer significant opportunity to increase activity levels and, in doing so, improve overall health and wellbeing and reduce obesity, whilst also offering an affordable and inclusive means of transportation.”

BARNSLEY has been ranked in the top ten communities with the highest rates of anti-depressant prescriptions.

Dan Jarvis, MP for Barnsley Central, said the new statistics from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation were ‘deeply concerning’.

He added: “I know that while our NHS and local mental health charities are doing their very best to provide vital services, they are struggling to cope with demand and thousands are struggling with their mental health, not least given the current cost-of -iving crisis.

“I don’t think it’s coincidence that the top ten communities are all in the north, this is the reality of the government’s failure to tackle regional inequality, this is the devastating human cost.

“It shouldn’t be the case that your mental health outcomes are determined by where you live.”