Midlands town tops obese chart

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Tamworth Borough Council has recently invested £17,000 in free swimming lessons in an effort to tackle the problem Credit: PA

Tamworth has been named as having one of the highest obesity rates of any town or city in the UK.

One in three people – or just over 30 per cent of the population - is obese according to data collated by the National Obesity Observatory.

But the area is not out of step with other towns and cities across the West Midlands which has a regional obesity rate of 26.4 per cent.

Tamworth Borough Council has recently invested £17,000 in free swimming lessons in an effort to tackle the problem.

It also runs 15 exercise classes a week at its Castle Grounds leisure centre.

Now GPs across the country are demanding a tax on sugary drinks, a limit on the number of fast-food outlets near to schools and a ban on unhealthy food in hospitals.

The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges is calling for action on what it is describing as the greatest public health crisis facing the UK.

At the current rate, it’s estimated 60 per cent of men, 50 per cent of women and a quarter of all children will be obese by 2050.