'Emergency' as over 10,000 Sheffield children hospitalised with breathing problems, say campaigners
A Clean Air Zone was introduced in Sheffield in 2023
More than 10,000 Sheffield children were hospitalised with breathing problems last year, according to campaigners.
Mums for Lungs said there were 10,724 admissions among children aged 0-18 in 2025.
It warned of an ‘air pollution emergency’ and called for stronger action to reduce children’s exposure, including measures around schools and on roads and faster progress towards cleaner air across England.
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A Clean Air Zone was introduced in Sheffield in 2023.
A year later, council chiefs said nitrogen dioxide (NO2) from traffic was down 16 per cent in the centre and 21 per cent across the wider city.
The Sheffield hospital admission figure was in a series of Freedom of Information responses to Mums for Lungs.
The group said a total of 213,341 children attended hospital with breathing problems at NHS hospitals in 11 major English cities in 2025.
Jemima Hartshorn, of Mums for Lungs, said “non-essential” wood burning and diesel vehicles “had to go.”
She said: “This is an air pollution emergency. Behind every number is a child who is struggling to breathe and a family looking for help.
“We cannot keep treating dirty air as inevitable or acceptable - our children deserve cleaner air around schools, nurseries, their homes and busy roads, and we need action now.
“We need to restore funding to tackle air pollution in the Budget and Government to bring down pollution across the country. Let’s be frank, non-essential wood burning and diesel vehicles have got to go. We all deserve to be healthy.”
The FOI data measure respiratory admissions and attendances, not the proportion attributable to air pollution, she added.