Number of vape shops surges 1,200% in England

• Starting June 1, sale and supply of disposable vapes will be banned across UK, both in stores and online
• As vape shops, fast food outlets, betting shops expand, vital services like banks, pharmacies, supermarkets, and public toilets are disappearing, researchers at Health Equity North warn

LONDON

England’s high streets are undergoing a dramatic shift, with vape shops rapidly replacing essential community services, particularly in the country’s poorest and northern regions, according to a new report released on Friday.

Researchers at Health Equity North, a collaboration between Newcastle University and the University of Manchester, found a staggering 1,200% increase in vape shops across England between 2014 and 2024.

The expansion is most concentrated in low-income areas, where there are now more than three times as many vape shops as in more affluent communities.

“The North has twice as many vape shops as the South,” said Professor Clare Bambra, a public health expert at Newcastle University. “The northern High Street now has fewer places to go to buy essentials, as well as fewer public toilets and other amenities and resources.”

The report warns that as vape shops, fast food outlets, and betting shops expand, vital services like banks, pharmacies, supermarkets, and public toilets are disappearing. This shift, the researchers argue, is deepening existing health and economic inequalities across the UK.

“People in deprived areas and the North are already facing worse outcomes,” said Dr Luke Munford, a health economist at the University of Manchester. “The sharp increase in fast food outlets, vape shops, bookmakers and other health-reducing amenities… could make the gap between North and South even greater.”

The authors are calling for urgent government action to help local authorities restrict the spread of unhealthy outlets and bring back essential services that support healthier, more connected communities.

Meanwhile, starting June 1, the sale and supply of disposable vapes will be banned across the UK, both in stores and online. The move, first announced in January of last year, aims to curb their widespread use.

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