Health checks are being conducted in workplaces across the borough.

The NHS heart health checks are being offered to employees under 40, who may have never had access to them before.

The checks are being carried out after Wigan Council's public health team successfully bid for government funding.

The health checks will identify people at higher risk of a range of diseases and help them to access "effective treatment" or take "preventative action".

The current NHS Health Check programme engages with over 1.3 million people in England, preventing an estimated 300 premature deaths.

In many cases, it can help prevent heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and kidney disease, as well as some cases of dementia among adults aged 40 to 74.

Councillor Danny Fletcher, lead member for leisure and public health at Wigan Council, said: "While eligible people in Wigan Borough are invited to have a check once every five years, many are not completing these checks.

"We know that men in particular are less likely to get early help and are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease at an earlier age.

"There can be many reasons these health checks are missed, often it can be as simple as day to day life getting in the way.

"Our successful bid for a share of Government funding helps us to remove those barriers by bringing life-saving health checks into the workplace.

"These checks will help to prevent a range of life changing and potentially fatal diseases, from stroke and diabetes to heart disease and in some cases, dementia."

Employers from a range of industries will take part in the programme including hospitality, transport and the social care sector.

Wigan's public health team has partnered with Health First which is currently delivering the checks at the Heinz factory in Wigan.

A spokesperson for Health First said: "We are delighted to be working alongside Wigan Council and many other lifestyle services to deliver workplace NHS Health Checks.

"The pilot will enable us to expand the reach of our workplace health checks in some of the most deprived areas within the borough."

Eligible businesses will be contacted directly and invited to participate.