Photo: Roger D Kidd · CC BY-SA 2.0Lives in Wolverhampton are shorter than across England: 76.9 for men and 81.1 for women
For 2019 to 2023, England’s figures are 79.1 and 83.0. Inside the city, men’s life expectancy runs from 73.6 in Wolverhampton Central to 81.4 in Castlecroft, 2 miles apart. Wolverhampton grades D for health: life expectancy, healthy life expectancy, early deaths, hospital admissions, child obesity and Census health, each adjusted for age; #20 of 35 in West Midlands.
What stands out about health in Wolverhampton
An 8-year gap from one part of Wolverhampton to another
Men in Castlecroft can expect to live to 81.4, longer than the English average of 79.1. In Wolverhampton Central, 2 miles away, the figure is 73.6, and Bushbury Hill records 168 deaths under 75 for every 100 expected for its ages. For women the range is 75.7 in Bushbury Hill to 85.2 in Tettenhall North. Neighbourhoods ↓
More of Wolverhampton’s children are obese
29% of Year 6 children (aged 10 to 11) were measured as obese over the last three school years, against 22.3% across England; more than in 97% of UK towns. Health Grade ↓
More A&E patients are seen within four hours than across England
The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, which runs the A&E at New Cross Hospital, saw 64% of major-A&E patients within four hours in the 12 months to September 2026, against 61% across England: 36th of 117 trusts. 14% of patients admitted through its A&Es waited more than 12 hours from the decision to admit, against 13% in England. A&E ↓
NHS dentists are easier to get than in most of England
Of adults in the Black Country area who tried to get an NHS dental appointment in the last two years, 86% succeeded, 5th highest of 36; across England it was 82%. Dentists ↓
Written from the OHID, NHS England and GP Patient Survey figures on this page. Life expectancy covers 2019 to 2023; neighbourhoods are ONS middle-layer areas of about 8,000 people.
Wolverhampton grades D for health
Healthier than 13% of UK towns, on age-adjusted measures.
Behind the typical UK town on every measure. Even its strongest, disability and emergency admissions, are in the bottom 40% of UK towns; child obesity and deaths under 75 are furthest behind. Among the 49 UK towns of 164,000 to 316,000 people, Wolverhampton’s Health Grade is the 42nd highest.
Each measure is ranked against every UK town of 1,000 or more, the ranks are averaged, and the average is ranked again. Every measure allows for the town’s ages: life expectancy is worked out from the death rate at each age, so it doesn’t depend on how old the town’s residents are; deaths and admissions are counted against what England’s rates would give a town with these ages, and the Census answers against England and Wales’s rates by single year of age, so a seaside town of retired people isn’t marked down for being old.
Men’s life expectancy across Wolverhampton runs from 73.6 to 81.4
Life expectancy at birth, 2019–23, in Wolverhampton’s 30 middle-layer neighbourhoods (about 8,000 people each). Circles are sized by residents and show men’s life expectancy.
The gap follows deprivation closely: Low Hill, where 57% of residents are income-deprived, has men’s life expectancy of 74.6. Bushbury Hill has the most deaths under 75 for its ages (168 per 100 expected), against 89 in Castlecroft.
Show every measure as a table
| Neighbourhood | Men | Women | Deaths under 75 | Emergency admissions | Year 6 obese | Income-deprived |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castlecroft | 81.4 | 84.0 | 89 | 81 | 21% | 18% |
| Upper Penn | 81.4 | 82.4 | 87 | 83 | 26% | 15% |
| Tettenhall North | 81.2 | 85.2 | 74 | 82 | 21% | 16% |
| Merryhill South | 80.0 | 81.9 | 100 | 97 | 30% | 29% |
| Compton & Merryhill North | 79.5 | 83.8 | 92 | 82 | 25% | 14% |
| Tettenhall South | 79.4 | 83.5 | 107 | 82 | 21% | 16% |
| Wednesfield Town | 78.6 | 81.0 | 122 | 112 | 28% | 24% |
| Bilston North West | 78.3 | 79.0 | 141 | 115 | 27% | 32% |
| Goldthorn Park | 77.8 | 80.3 | 106 | 90 | 28% | 19% |
| Bushbury | 77.7 | 82.1 | 122 | 104 | 32% | 30% |
| Wednesfield North East | 77.7 | 80.2 | 125 | 109 | 32% | 32% |
| Ashmore Park | 77.6 | 82.8 | 124 | 113 | 29% | 33% |
| Bradmore | 77.4 | 81.6 | 103 | 91 | 27% | 19% |
| Wood End | 77.3 | 80.9 | 112 | 114 | 29% | 27% |
| Ettingshall Park | 77.2 | 83.6 | 119 | 93 | 28% | 28% |
| Woodcross | 76.8 | 79.8 | 130 | 123 | 26% | 32% |
| Whitmore Reans & Dunstall Hill | 75.9 | 79.2 | 133 | 120 | 30% | 49% |
| Oxley Park | 75.7 | 80.5 | 135 | 112 | 26% | 33% |
| Heath Town | 75.7 | 81.1 | 162 | 109 | 33% | 51% |
| Bilston North East | 75.6 | 81.9 | 133 | 109 | 34% | 38% |
| West Park | 75.1 | 78.8 | 145 | 102 | 23% | 36% |
| Park Lane | 74.9 | 81.2 | 158 | 118 | 31% | 50% |
| Ettingshall | 74.9 | 79.7 | 151 | 109 | 34% | 44% |
| Low Hill | 74.6 | 78.8 | 151 | 151 | 33% | 57% |
| Fordhouses | 74.4 | 81.4 | 143 | 98 | 30% | 32% |
| East Park | 74.4 | 78.4 | 162 | 120 | 37% | 49% |
| Pendeford | 74.3 | 80.5 | 158 | 107 | 24% | 41% |
| Blakenhall | 74.3 | 80.7 | 142 | 106 | 31% | 45% |
| Bushbury Hill | 74.0 | 75.7 | 168 | 134 | 31% | 51% |
| Wolverhampton Central | 73.6 | 80.2 | 165 | 110 | 31% | 47% |
Deaths and admissions per 100 expected for each area’s ages (England = 100). Each figure has a range: Wolverhampton Central’s men’s life expectancy is 73.6 with a 95% range of 71.9 to 75.2. Neighbourhoods are ONS middle-layer areas at least 30% inside Wolverhampton; names are the House of Commons Library’s.
Royal Wolverhampton saw 64% of major-A&E patients within four hours
Type 1 (major) A&E attendances seen, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival, by month. NHS England publishes it by trust, not hospital: the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust runs the A&E at New Cross Hospital, the nearest to Wolverhampton (1.3 mi).
The share seen within four hours slipped from an average of 72% in April 2025 to September 2025 to 65% in the latest six months; England’s was 62%. Long waits for a bed are commoner than at 56% of trusts: 7,387 patients in 12 months, 14% of emergency admissions through A&E. CQC’s latest ratings for New Cross Hospital: urgent and emergency services requires improvement (2026), the hospital overall requires improvement (2026).
Midlands trusts
Hospitals within 25 miles
| Distance | Hospital | CQC overall | Urgent & emergency |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.3 mi | New Cross Hospital A&E Wolverhampton · The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust | Requires improvement2026 | Requires improvement2026 |
| 5.2 mi | Manor Hospital A&E Walsall · Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust | Requires improvement2026 | Requires improvement2024 |
| 5.3 mi | Guest Hospital Dudley · The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | — |
| 6.1 mi | Russells Hall Hospital A&E Dudley · The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust | Requires improvement2023 | Requires improvement2023 |
| 8.1 mi | Cannock Chase Hospital Cannock · The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust | Good2020 | — |
| 8.1 mi | Rowley Regis Hospital Rowley Regis · Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust | Not rated | — |
| 8.7 mi | Corbett Hospital Stourbridge · The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust | Inadequate2019 | — |
| 9.9 mi | Midland Metropolitan University Hospital A&E Smethwick · Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust | Not rated | Good2026 |
NHS acute hospitals registered with the Care Quality Commission (care directory, 01 October 2026). “A&E” marks a major (type 1) emergency department, open 24 hours and led by consultants, in NHS England’s Emergency Care Data Set; a hospital without the mark may still have a minor injury unit or urgent treatment centre. Ratings run Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement, Inadequate; the year is when each was published. Distances are straight lines from the town centre.
86% of adults in the Black Country area who tried got an NHS dental appointment
Adults who tried to get an NHS dental appointment for themselves in the last two years, and got one. GP Patient Survey 2026, by integrated care system (the NHS area that plans dentistry for Wolverhampton).
Black Country has the 5th highest of England’s 36 health areas; across England 82% of those who tried got an appointment. Of Black Country patients who did, 77% rated the experience good (England 74%). NHS practices taking new patients are listed on the NHS website’s Find a dentist; for urgent dental pain, call NHS 111.
The survey asks GP patients about dentistry, so results are published for health areas, not towns or practices.
Men’s life expectancy in Wolverhampton is about what its level of deprivation predicts
Across 1,996 English towns of 2,500 or more, men’s life expectancy tracks income deprivation closely (correlation −0.81). Each dot is a town.
34% of Wolverhampton’s residents are income-deprived, more than in most English towns. For that level, the line predicts 76.4 years for men; Wolverhampton’s is 76.9. For women it predicts 80.7, and Wolverhampton’s 81.1 is close to it.
Income deprivation: share of residents in low-income households, English Indices of Deprivation 2025, averaged over each town’s neighbourhoods. A town above or below the line isn’t necessarily doing better or worse on care: students, prisons and hostels inside a boundary all shift the figures.
Care in and near Wolverhampton
The nearest A&E, the practice patients rate highest, and where to go when it’s urgent but not an emergency. In an emergency, call 999.
77% of patients rate Wolverhampton’s 26 GP practices good
GP Patient Survey 2026 (NHS England, run by Ipsos), about 100 patients a practice, against 77% across England. 20th of 46 English towns of 164,000 to 316,000, from the highest.
| Practice | Overall experience | Easy by phone | Wait about right | CQC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newbridge Surgery WV6 0DE · 4,828 adult patients | 94% good · range 89%–97% | 99% | 89% | Good2018 |
| Penn Surgery WV3 7LR · 5,701 adult patients | 91% good · range 85%–95% | 91% | 85% | Good2023 |
| Probert Road Surgery WV10 6UF · 3,689 adult patients | 91% good · range 84%–95% | 98% | 96% | Good2017 |
| Tettenhall Medical Practice WV6 9LL · 9,335 adult patients | 88% good · range 74%–95% | 70% | 58% | Good2018 |
| Poplars Medical Practice WV10 9PG · 2,778 adult patients | 88% good · range 85%–91% | 88% | 92% | Good2022 |
| Castlecroft Medical Practice WV3 8JN · 10,545 adult patients | 84% good · range 62%–95% | 48% | 70% | Good2021 |
| Dr Kewal Krishan WV1 2GZ · 9,376 adult patients | 83% good · range 69%–91% | 64% | 67% | Good2016 |
| Ashfield Road Surgery WV10 6QX · 4,856 adult patients | 82% good · range 76%–87% | 72% | 83% | Good2026 |
| Griffiths Drive Medical Practice WV11 2JN · 4,024 adult patients | 82% good · range 77%–86% | 70% | 71% | Good2022 |
| Tudor Medical Centre WV10 0LT · 17,784 adult patients | 82% good · range 40%–97% | 54% | 67% | Good2019 |
| Duncan Street Primary Care Partnership WV2 3AN · 9,343 adult patients | 81% good · range 61%–92% | 55% | 82% | Good2017 |
| Pennfields Health Centre WV3 0JH · 5,223 adult patients | 80% good · range 68%–89% | 65% | 76% | Good2022 |
| Dr Manjit Singh Kainth WV10 8RN · 2,338 adult patients | 78% good · range 74%–81% | 73% | 90% | Good2023 |
| Woden Road Surgery WV10 0BD · 5,639 adult patients | 78% good · range 67%–86% | 47% | 67% | Good2017 |
| Cannock Road Medical Practice WV10 8PJ · 5,513 adult patients | 78% good · range 63%–88% | 64% | 73% | Good2026 |
| Wolverhampton Doctors Limited WV10 9ST · 5,071 adult patients | 76% good · range 63%–85% | 60% | 68% | Good2017 |
| Penn Manor Medical Practice WV4 5PY · 30,031 adult patients | 74% good · range 16%–98% | 45% | 68% | Good2021 |
| Fordhouses Medical Centre WV10 6RU · 3,197 adult patients | 72% good · range 67%–76% | 56% | 69% | Good2017 |
| East Park Medical Practice WV1 2LW · 4,600 adult patients | 72% good · range 60%–81% | 75% | 61% | Good2026 |
| Whitmore Reans Health Practice WV6 0QL · 14,087 adult patients | 71% good · range 47%–87% | 43% | 58% | Good2018 |
| Grove Medical Centre WV2 2AU · 30,416 adult patients | 71% good · range 17%–97% | 40% | 49% | Good2022 |
| Ashmore Park Health Centre WV11 2LH · 3,072 adult patients | 70% good · range 63%–77% | 63% | 62% | Good2021 |
| Prestbury Medical Practice WV10 8EA · 10,425 adult patients | 69% good · range 47%–85% | 35% | 72% | Good2026 |
| OHP - MGS Medical Practice WV10 9SX · 5,308 adult patients | 69% good · range 58%–78% | 50% | 59% | Good2021 |
| Thornley Street Medical Centre WV1 1JP · 7,554 adult patients | 64% good · range 48%–78% | 46% | 51% | Good2018 |
| Keats Grove Surgery WV10 8LY · 4,850 adult patients | 60% good · range 46%–73% | 37% | 69% | Good2017 |
Newbridge Surgery has the city’s highest rating (94%). Grove Medical Centre is by far the largest, with 30,416 adult patients. You can register with any practice whose area covers your address.
GP Patient Survey 2026: surveys sent January to March 2026; results weighted by NHS England. The range is the 95% confidence interval. Adult patients: the survey’s practice population aged 16 and over. A practice counts as in Wolverhampton when its main surgery is inside the built-up area; branch surgeries are part of their main practice. CQC ratings © Care Quality Commission.
79% of residents say their health is good or very good
Census 2021, all residents, as answered (not adjusted for age).
Adjusted for age, 123 report bad health for every 100 expected, more than the national rate.
Show as a table
| Census 2021 | Wolverhampton | West Midlands | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 79% | 80% | 82% |
| Fair health | 14% | 14% | 13% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.2% | 6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled under the Equality Act | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Day-to-day activities limited a lot | 8.2% | 8.1% | 7.4% |
West Midlands and England: all residents of their built-up areas (towns and cities), from the same Census 2021 output areas.
Wolverhampton’s Health Grade is 42nd of 49 UK towns of 164,000 to 316,000
Ordered by Health Grade: the top three, the towns either side of Wolverhampton, and others in West Midlands. Life expectancy for men / women; deaths under 75 per 100 expected.
| # | Town | People | Life expectancy | Deaths under 75 | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richmond upon Thames London | 192,888 | 82.2 / 86.6 | 64 | A |
| 2 | Kingston upon Thames London | 166,333 | 81.1 / 85.3 | 77 | B+ |
| 3 | Harrow London | 260,534 | 80.9 / 85.2 | 78 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Barking and Dagenham London | 218,236 | 76.9 / 81.1 | 125 | C− |
| 41 | Bolton Greater Manchester | 184,077 | 76.4 / 81.1 | 136 | D |
| 42 | Wolverhampton West Midlands | 234,029 | 76.9 / 81.1 | 129 | D |
| 43 | Newcastle upon Tyne Tyne and Wear | 286,472 | 77.2 / 81.6 | 127 | D |
| 44 | Swansea West Glamorgan | 170,090 | — | — | D |
| … | |||||
| 49 | Belfast Belfast | 293,298 | 76.3 / 80.5 | — | D− |
Health letters rank against every UK town of 1,000 or more; the order here is context only. Welsh towns are graded on life expectancy, healthy life expectancy and the two Census measures: OHID’s early-death, admissions and child-obesity figures cover England.
Health in the places around Wolverhampton
Life expectancy for men / women, and the nearest A&E. Tap a town for its health page.
| Town | People | Life expectancy | Nearest A&E | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolverhampton | 234,029 | 76.9 / 81.1 | 1.3 mi | D |
| Bilston | 34,631 | 75.1 / 79.9 | 2.7 mi | D− |
| Perton | 9,302 | 81.3 / 85.1 | 4.5 mi | B |
| Willenhall | 49,582 | 77.4 / 81.8 | 2 mi | D |
| Coseley | 25,206 | 78.0 / 82.0 | 2.8 mi | D |
| Essington | 3,471 | 76.1 / 81.1 | 2.5 mi | C− |
| Featherstone | 7,096 | 79.9 / 83.0 | 3.1 mi | C− |
| Codsall | 11,867 | 79.1 / 84.0 | 4.4 mi | B− |
Perton, 3.4 miles away, has men’s life expectancy of 81.3, 4.4 years longer than Wolverhampton’s.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- A&E figures are for the trust. NHS England publishes four-hour waits by trust, not hospital, so the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust’s figures cover every major A&E it runs. They count type 1 (major) departments; minor injury units and urgent treatment centres are left out, which is why they sit below the all-types figure NHS England headlines (75% for England).
- The GP survey is a survey. About 100 patients answer for each practice, so a practice’s figure has a range (shown in the table); small differences between practices aren’t meaningful. The town figure weights each practice by its adult patients, some of whom live outside Wolverhampton.
- Adjusted for age. A ratio of 100 means as many deaths, admissions or reports of bad health as England’s rates (England and Wales’s for the Census) would give a town with these ages; 120 means a fifth more.
- Small areas, summed to the town. OHID publishes these figures for middle-layer areas of about 8,000 people; the town’s figure averages the areas it covers, weighted by how many of their residents live in it, so a village shares its area’s figure with the countryside around it.
- Different years. Life expectancy and deaths cover 2019 to 2023; emergency admissions 2016/17 to 2020/21 (the latest OHID publishes for small areas, including the pandemic dip); child obesity the three school years to 2024/25; A&E the 12 months to September 2026; the GP Patient Survey early 2026; CQC ratings were published on different dates, shown in each row.
- Distances are straight lines. Miles are measured from the town’s centre to each site; the road is longer. For an emergency, call 999; for urgent advice, call NHS 111.
Questions about health in Wolverhampton
How healthy is Wolverhampton?
Wolverhampton earns a D for health, healthier than 13% of UK towns on measures adjusted for age, and 42nd of 49 UK towns of its size. Life expectancy is 76.9 for men and 81.1 for women (England 79.1 and 83.0), and there are 129 deaths under 75 for every 100 expected.
Which parts of Wolverhampton have the highest life expectancy?
For men, Castlecroft (81.4), Upper Penn (81.4) and Tettenhall North (81.2); the shortest is Wolverhampton Central (73.6). For women, Tettenhall North is highest (85.2) and Bushbury Hill lowest (75.7). OHID figures for 2019 to 2023, by neighbourhood of about 8,000 people.
How long are A&E waits at New Cross Hospital?
NHS England publishes waits for the trust, the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. In the 12 months to September 2026 it saw 64% of major-A&E patients within four hours, against 61% across England; in September 2026 the figure was 66%. In an emergency call 999; for urgent advice call NHS 111.
Can I get an NHS dentist in Wolverhampton?
It is easier than in most of England. In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 86% of adults in the Black Country area who tried to get an NHS dental appointment in the last two years got one, against 82% across England. Practices taking new NHS patients are listed on the NHS website’s Find a dentist service.
Which GP practice in Wolverhampton do patients rate highest?
In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, Newbridge Surgery (94% good overall), Penn Surgery (91% good overall) and Probert Road Surgery (91% good overall). Across all 26 Wolverhampton practices, 77% of patients rate their practice good, against 77% in England.
What is the life expectancy in Wolverhampton?
76.9 years for men and 81.1 for women, on OHID’s figures for 2019 to 2023. Men can expect 61.2 of those years and women 61.6 in good health.
CQC ratings © Care Quality Commission.
Sources: OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (life expectancy and deaths 2019–23, emergency admissions 2016/17–2020/21, NCMP 2022/23–2024/25); House of Commons Library MSOA names · ONS health state life expectancy for small areas (MSOAs), England and Wales, 2019 to 2023 (healthy life expectancy) · ONS Census 2021 general health and disability, adjusted for age · Care Quality Commission care directory and latest ratings, 01 October 2026 · NHS Organisation Data Service · GP Patient Survey 2026 (NHS England, run by Ipsos) · NHS England, A&E Attendances and Emergency Admissions (monthly, by trust) and Emergency Care Data Set activity by site, June–September 2026 (type 1 A&Es) · MHCLG English Indices of Deprivation 2025 · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.