Liverpool ranked as UK’s chlamydia capital as nation’s STI hotspots revealed
England has a bit of an issue when it comes to diseases spread by adult contact, and now the most dangerous and safest cities have been ranked in a grim list for many places
The city of Liverpool has been labelled England’s Chlamydia capital. Eye-opening new data commissioned by Condoms UK also found Islington has been ranked as the nation’s overall STI capital.
Having analysed diagnosis rates from England’s 50 most populated towns and cities, the data shows that for every 100,000 people in Liverpool, 2,719 people have been diagnosed with chlamydia. That’s one in every 36 residents, and 73% higher than the national average of 1,564 cases per 100,000 people.
Islington leads the overall rankings with a risk score of 94, driven by the highest genital herpes rate in England (131 cases per 100,000 people), while the MP-filled City of Westminster follows closely behind Islington, recording the highest rates of syphilis at 125 per 100,000 people, gonorrhoea at 749 per 100,000, and genital warts reaching 135 per 100,000 in England.
As well as Westminster and Islington standing out as STI hotspots, Archway came second overall. This has resulted in three of the top five riskiest areas for contracting an STI being based in London.
On the other end of the scale, Dudley was ranked as the safest place, with Northampton, Bradford and Swindon following behind.
Of those with student-heavy populations, London has the highest risk of catching an STI with a risk score of 90 out of 100. Manchester and Nottingham bring up the rear, with 84 and 83 out of 100 respectively.
The experts at Condom UK claim that the issues stem from three causes – decreased sexual health funding, misconceptions about transmission and something they’ve called “condom fatigue”.
On the latter, a spokesman said: This is where individuals in casual or long-term non-exclusive relationships gradually reduce condom use.
In fact, a survey by the UK’s National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (NATSAL) revealed that one in three people aged 18-35 admitted to not using condoms with new partners, despite knowing the risks.”
The full list of the worst areas for STIs is:
- Islington
- Archway
- Blackpool
- Westminster
- Manchester
- Nottingham
- Liverpool (highest Chlamydia rate)
- Croydon
- Leeds
- Newcastle
The safest areas are:
- Dudley
- Northampton
- Bradford
- Swindon
- Birkenhead
- Sutton
- Ipswich
- Sunderland
- Milton Keynes
- Birmingham
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