Tower Hamlets
Bad news for people born in Tower Hamlets who face the shortest disability-free or illness-free lives in the country Getty

British people face a "postcode lottery" over how long they will live without being struck down by disability or long-term illness.

New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that people living in affluent, leafy parts of the country like Hertfordshire can enjoy 16 more years of healthy living than someone born in the east London borough of Tower Hamlets.

The statistics also show that people born in the south of England have a much higher "disability-free life expectancy" (DFLE) compared with those living in the north.

The ONS found that baby girls born in Hertfordshire between 2009-11 can expect to live to the age of 71.7 years before being struck down by a "limiting or persistent" illness.

Contrastingly, girls born in Tower Hamlets can only expect to live to 55.6 years on average before facing serious illness or life-changing disabilities.

If your son was born in Richmond-upon-Thames between 2009-11, he can expect to live until he is 69.9 without disability.

But bad news if he was born in Liverpool, as boys have a DFLE of just 56.4 years – 13.5 years less than those born in the southwest London borough.

Speaking about the disparity the ONS said: "There was considerable variation between the DFLE of different regions.

"There was a clear north-south divide with the southern regions having higher DFLE."