Breathing in England is Injurious to Health.

Air pollution threatens the health of 57.4 million people across 118 districts in England. The average PM2.5 level is 7.4 µg/m³—1.5× higher than the WHO guideline.

AboutMake Air Quality Great AgainAQLI Data

Brought to you by Amrit Sharma

Overview

Air Pollution in England

England faces significant air pollution challenges. 99% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 57.4 million across 118 districts at risk.

The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 7.4µg/m³. That's 1.5 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.

This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 123 cigarettes in a year.

Trends

Air Quality Trend

Annual PM2.5 levels from 2014 to 2023. The WHO guideline for safe air is 5 µg/m³.

Health Impact

Life Expectancy Impact

If England met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.23 years longer.

That's 13.2M years of life stolen from 57.4 million people. Years of watching children grow up. Years of building a career. Years of quiet mornings and celebrations.

Lives cut short. Breathing kills.

Most Polluted

Districts with Highest Pollution

The top 10 most polluted districts in England. These areas face the greatest health burden from air pollution.

  • 1.North Somerset
    0.5 years lost
  • 2.Bristol
    0.4 years lost
  • 3.Rotherham
    0.4 years lost
  • 4.South Gloucestershire
    0.4 years lost
  • 5.Barnsley
    0.4 years lost
  • 6.Manchester
    0.4 years lost
  • 7.Sheffield
    0.4 years lost
  • 8.Wakefield
    0.4 years lost
  • 9.Doncaster
    0.4 years lost
  • 10.Tameside
    0.4 years lost
Exposure

Population Exposure by Pollution Level

Distribution of population across different PM2.5 pollution levels. The WHO guideline is 5 µg/m³—only populations below this threshold are breathing safe air.

< 5 µg/m³
0%
2K
5-10 µg/m³
100%
57.4M
10-15 µg/m³
0%
0
15-25 µg/m³
0%
0
25-35 µg/m³
0%
0
> 35 µg/m³
0%
0
Districts

All 118 Districts in England

Complete air quality data for every district in England, sorted by population.

DistrictPopulationPM2.5 µg/m³Years Lost
Greater London8.9M
7.5
0.2 years
Kent1.6M
7.1
0.2 years
Essex1.5M
7.1
0.2 years
Hampshire1.4M
6.8
0.2 years
Lancashire1.3M
6.8
0.2 years
Hertfordshire1.2M
6.5
0.1 years
Surrey1.2M
6.4
0.1 years
Birmingham1.1M
8.0
0.3 years
Lincolnshire949K
7.8
0.3 years
Staffordshire935K
7.8
0.3 years
Nottinghamshire889K
8.6
0.4 years
West Sussex881K
6.5
0.1 years
Cambridgeshire877K
6.9
0.2 years
Devon850K
6.8
0.2 years
Leeds827K
8.7
0.4 years
Northamptonshire808K
6.9
0.2 years
Derbyshire804K
8.3
0.3 years
Norfolk785K
6.7
0.2 years
Suffolk757K
6.8
0.2 years
Oxfordshire748K
6.6
0.2 years
Leicestershire730K
7.6
0.3 years
Sefton729K
7.1
0.2 years
Warwickshire671K
7.4
0.2 years
Gloucestershire659K
7.3
0.2 years
North Yorkshire622K
7.1
0.2 years
Worcestershire601K
7.1
0.2 years
Buckinghamshire591K
6.5
0.1 years
Somerset584K
8.1
0.3 years
Cornwall571K
5.7
0.1 years
Manchester566K
8.9
0.4 years
Bradford562K
8.3
0.3 years
East Sussex554K
6.4
0.1 years
Sheffield551K
8.9
0.4 years
Wiltshire533K
7.3
0.2 years
Durham520K
6.6
0.2 years
Cumbria502K
6.1
0.1 years
Bristol478K
9.6
0.4 years
Sandwell441K
8.3
0.3 years
Kirklees436K
8.4
0.3 years
Dorset433K
7.2
0.2 years
Cheshire East400K
7.5
0.2 years
Cheshire West and Chester382K
6.9
0.2 years
Leicester373K
7.7
0.3 years
Wakefield366K
8.8
0.4 years
East Riding of Yorkshire351K
7.8
0.3 years
Walsall334K
8.3
0.3 years
Shropshire333K
7.1
0.2 years
Northumberland330K
5.9
0.1 years
Coventry326K
7.7
0.3 years
Wigan324K
7.3
0.2 years
Newcastle upon Tyne324K
6.5
0.2 years
Doncaster319K
8.8
0.4 years
Wirral318K
6.9
0.2 years
Central Bedfordshire311K
6.6
0.2 years
Nottingham309K
8.7
0.4 years
Bolton296K
7.7
0.3 years
Stockport290K
8.5
0.3 years
Milton Keynes286K
6.7
0.2 years
Stoke-on-Trent286K
7.8
0.3 years
Medway284K
7.4
0.2 years
Tameside280K
8.8
0.4 years
South Gloucestershire273K
9.0
0.4 years
Kingston upon Hull272K
8.1
0.3 years
Brighton and Hove266K
6.9
0.2 years
Barnsley264K
9.0
0.4 years
Sunderland256K
6.7
0.2 years
Rochdale254K
8.3
0.3 years
Rotherham249K
9.3
0.4 years
Trafford248K
8.4
0.3 years
North Somerset246K
10.0
0.5 years
Derby246K
8.3
0.3 years
Wokingham242K
7.0
0.2 years
Southampton239K
6.9
0.2 years
Warrington234K
7.4
0.2 years
Plymouth234K
6.6
0.2 years
Dudley233K
7.8
0.3 years
Oldham233K
8.5
0.3 years
Luton230K
6.5
0.1 years
Salford228K
8.3
0.3 years
Portsmouth220K
7.5
0.2 years
Swindon219K
7.3
0.2 years
Wolverhampton217K
8.2
0.3 years
North Tyneside216K
6.5
0.1 years
Calderdale210K
8.2
0.3 years
York208K
7.7
0.3 years
Peterborough201K
7.0
0.2 years
Stockton-on-Tees199K
7.2
0.2 years
Gateshead194K
6.6
0.2 years
Bournemouth193K
7.4
0.2 years
Bury192K
8.1
0.3 years
Herefordshire192K
7.6
0.3 years
Bath and North East Somerset192K
8.5
0.3 years
Telford and Wrekin190K
7.7
0.3 years
Solihull183K
7.6
0.3 years
Knowsley181K
7.2
0.2 years
Thurrock178K
7.6
0.3 years
Saint Helens178K
7.3
0.2 years
Bedfordshire174K
6.7
0.2 years
Slough172K
6.7
0.2 years
Southend-on-Sea165K
7.8
0.3 years
Blackburn with Darwen163K
7.0
0.2 years
Poole162K
7.5
0.2 years
North Lincolnshire161K
8.5
0.3 years
Redcar and Cleveland160K
6.4
0.1 years
South Tyneside155K
6.6
0.2 years
Windsor and Maidenhead142K
6.7
0.2 years
West Berkshire142K
6.8
0.2 years
Isle of Wight139K
7.2
0.2 years
Torbay133K
6.9
0.2 years
Reading133K
7.0
0.2 years
Middlesbrough127K
7.2
0.2 years
Halton125K
7.3
0.2 years
Bracknell Forest124K
6.9
0.2 years
Blackpool124K
6.7
0.2 years
Darlington110K
7.0
0.2 years
Hartlepool95K
7.0
0.2 years
Rutland37K
7.0
0.2 years
Isles of Scilly2K
4.2
0.0 years

Showing 118 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.