Map reveals England’s gonorrhoea hotspots — with one London borough crowned ‘clap capital’

Earlier this month, the UK became the first country in the world to roll out a vaccine for gonorrhoea.

The breakthrough jab has been shown in trials to cut the risk of infection by more than 50% and is being hailed as a major milestone in sexual health.

Given diagnoses have more than doubled in the past decade and reached record highs in 2023, it’s severely needed — but there are a few regions where it’ll prove especially vital.

To highlight where the vaccine could have the biggest impact, Condoms.UK analysed NHS data to uncover England’s top gonorrhoea hotspots, with one London borough taking the unwelcome crown.

In the City of Westminster, 749 diagnoses of gonorrhoea – otherwise known as ‘the clap’ or ‘drip’ – were recorded last year per 100,000 people.

With a population of 211,500, that translates to 1,586 Westminster locals overall. However, it’s also home to one of the country’s largest STI clinics, 56 Dean Street in Soho, so non-residents who head to the city centre location for testing may be skewing the figures somewhat.

Next on the list is Islington, with 724 cases per 100,000 people, while Archway is third but has a far lower prevalence at 397 cases for every 100,000.

Outside the capital, Liverpool has the highest rate of any regional city, followed by Nottingham and Manchester. All three are university hubs with large student populations and busy nightlife scenes, which may contribute to increased transmission rates.

Major cities like Newcastle and Leeds also feature in the top 10, but seaside resort Blackpool also makes the list, proving that smaller towns are not immune to the spread of infection.

What are the symptoms of gonorrhoea? Everything you need to know

Gonorrhoea symptoms usually start around two weeks after infection, but they can lie dormant for months, or you could even be symptomless.

For women, keep an eye out for telltale signs like yellow or greenish discharge, burning when you pee, pain in your abdomen, and bleeding between periods.

In men, it can cause sore testicles, fluid or discharge coming out of your penis and burning when you pee.

The STI is spread through unprotected sex – including oral – and can affect the eyes and mouth as well as the genitals.

Oral gonorrhoea symptoms include a sore or itchy throat, difficulty swallowing, swollen glands in the neck, and sometimes redness or white spots in the throat or mouth, while gonococcal conjunctivitis may present as redness, pain or discharge in the eyes.

Although some strains are more resistant than others, most can be treated with a simple course antibiotics, so visit your GP or local sexual health clinic if you’re concerned.

In terms of the vaccine, Bexsero (4CMenB) innoculations are currently being offered to people at highest risk of gonorrhoea – primarily men who have sex with men who have had multiple sexual partners and a bacterial STI in the last 12 months – but clinicians can also offer it to other patients if they’re assessed to be similarly vulnerable. 

Dr Amanda Doyle, NHS National Director for Primary Care and Community Services, said: ‘This vaccine is already used to protect against Men B and is proven to be effective against gonorrhoea, preventing the spread of infection and reducing the rising rates of antibiotic-resistant strains.

‘That is why it is so important that everyone eligible takes up the offer through sexual health services alongside existing jabs for mpox, hepatitis A and B, and HPV, helping to ensure we keep each other safe.’

Even if you’ve had the vaccine though, it doesn’t eliminate your risk of contracting gonorrhoea entirely, so you should still use condoms and get regular STI tests.

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