Blackpool and Manchester have the lowest life expectancy in England, according to BBC-comissioned research.

The findings by Experian reveal men in Blackpool are expected to live 73.7 years and women in Manchester to an average of 79.1.

The local authority with the highest life expectancy is London's Kensington and Chelsea at 84.4 years for men and 89 for women.

Average UK life expectancy is 77.9 years for males and 82 for females.

The Experian research has been commissioned by BBC English Regions as part of its Living Longer project, which looks at how areas of England will be affected by the ageing population.

Chronic illness

Life expectancy in a number of North West cities is low, according to the research.

For women, life expectancy in Liverpool is 79.2, in Halton in Cheshire it is 79.2 and 79.3 in Blackburn with Darwen in Lancashire.

For men, life expectancy in Manchester is 74, 74.4 in Darwen in Lancashire and 74.5 in Liverpool.

Corby in Northamptonshire also has one of the lowest life expectancies for men - aged 74.

Westminster in London has the second highest rate for both sexes - 83.4 for men and 86.5 for women.

Professor Raymond Tallis, an expert in geriatric medicine, said the rate at which life expectancy overall was increasing was "astonishing".

He said on average people were living three months more for every year that passes.

Better nutrition, health education and a reduction in injuries at work during the first half of the 20th Century, as well as improved healthcare generally, were behind the increase, he said.

"Incidents of death from heart attacks of people below (the age of) 65 fell by 50% just in the 1990s alone as a result of better management and better provision," Prof Tallis said.

He added that the ageing population's impact on society may not be as negative as some commentators have predicted.

"I think on the whole we just need to realise that if we play our cards right, provision, good treatment, rehabilitation, then the burden for the person themselves and people around them of disability and chronic illness in old age might not be as frightening as people fear."

Source: BBC