North East has highest accidental death rate in England
A new report has been published by safety charity the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents
People in the North East of England are more than twice as likely to be killed in an accident than someone in London.
That's according to a new report from safety charity the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
With a death rate of 44 per 100,000 people, compared to an average of 32 across the country, they say the North East is the most dangerous region for accidents in the country. London, with an average of 20 deaths per 100,000 people, emerged as the safest place to live.
RoSPA’s Annual Review of Accidents also highlights particular accident hotspots. Redcar and Cleveland (66 per 100,000 people) and Middlesbrough (60 per 100,000 people) are among the local authorities with the highest accidental death rates in England and Wales.
The charity says deaths from accidents are rising across the UK, and hospital admissions due to accidents are putting immense pressure on the NHS. RoSPA found that an estimated 23,000 people – more than the capacity of the 02 Arena – lose their lives to accidents every year, while almost 900,000 people were admitted to hospital, the equivalent of the population of Devon passing through the NHS.
There was an 8% increase in the rate of all accidental deaths in 2023/24, with particularly sharp rises in falls (12%), accidental poisonings (10%) and accidents caused by objects, such as being hit against something or crushed by machinery, (13%).
The most common causes of accidental death are:
• Falls
• Poisoning (including alcohol and narcotics)
• Road traffic collisions
• Accidental threats to breathing, such as choking, not including drowning
• Exposure to smoke, fire and flames
RoSPA adds that hospital admissions also rose by a rate of 3% over one year in Great Britain, including a 17% rate of increase in admissions caused by animals and 6% by poisonings.
Where people live has a big influence on their likelihood of suffering an accident. While the North East had the highest accidental death rate in England, followed by the North West, Scotland was the most dangerous of the devolved UK nations, with an accidental death rate of 51 per 100,000, followed by Wales (44), Northern Ireland (39) and England (32). In addition, people in the most deprived areas of England are nearly twice as likely (1.87 times) to die in an accident as those in the least deprived.
In 2024, RoSPA urged the Government to implement a National Accident Prevention Strategy to tackle accidents as a serious public health crisis. The Annual Review of Accidents shows that, without dedicated action, this crisis is getting even worse. They say these figures only strengthen the case for a coordinated, cross-sector government response, in order to reduce the suffering caused by preventable deaths and injuries, lessen the burden on the NHS and economy, and make society safer for everyone.
Becky Hickman, CEO of RoSPA, said:
“Accidents devastate lives in an instant. They are often sudden, violent, and shocking, leaving families and communities to cope with consequences that can last a lifetime. What makes this devastation even harder to bear is the knowledge that so many of these incidents are entirely preventable.
"Our Annual Review of Accidents shows we are still not doing enough to reduce avoidable harm, life-changing injuries and personal tragedies. From our roads to our workplaces, the homes we live in to where we spend our leisure time, people in Britain are at increasing and unacceptable risk of suffering a serious accident. And it is those who are already vulnerable – young children, the elderly, and people in deprived communities – who are in the greatest danger.
"By keeping a close eye on trends, learning from patterns of injury, and acting on the evidence, we can help ensure that individuals, communities, and the wider society are better protected from the consequences of accidental injury.”
RoSPA’s Annual Review of Accidents is endorsed by Chris Boardman CBE, Olympic Gold Medal-winning cyclist and Commissioner at Active Travel England:
“Serious injuries and deaths on our roads are often treated as an unfortunate but inevitable part of everyday life. They are not. In most cases, they are predictable and preventable.
"If we want more people to choose to walk, wheel or cycle, our streets must look and feel safe. Active Travel England is working with councils across the country to design safety into our streets, creating high-quality, joined-up networks that give people, especially children, real access to affordable, green and healthy transport.”
Dr Sally-Anne Wilson, Vice President, Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM), said:
“Emergency Departments see first-hand the rising impact of accidental injuries, particularly among older people. The patients I worry about most are those who fall from standing height, often in their own homes, and arrive in the ED with serious injuries such as hip or rib fractures. These seemingly simple accidents can have devastating consequences.
"We know that older people are disproportionately affected by crowding in Emergency Departments, and that delays transferring them to inpatient wards are linked with longer hospital stays and increased mortality.
"Prevention must be a priority. Anything we can do to reduce the number and severity of avoidable injuries will make a meaningful difference to patient outcomes and help relieve pressure on a stretched emergency care system. RCEM strongly supports RoSPA’s focus on this vital area of public health.”