A NEW cheating map reveals that more than 8,600 people are having affairs in Chester.

It also shows that adultery has increased in most towns Cheshire in the last year.

According to Illicit Encounters' 2021 Infidelity Index, 8,606 people in Chester are having an affair - up from 8,206 last year. This represents 6.88 per cent of residents.

This means Chester is ranked as the cheating capital of the North - and second only to Bath in the UK rankings.

The Somerset city, famous for its Roman baths, has been named as the place where people are most likely to have an affair.

The map also has data for Ellesmere Port and Frodsham.

651 people in Ellesmere Port are having an affair - up from 633 last year.

In Frodsham, the number is 352 - up from 298.

The rise was due, it has been claimed, to the end of pandemic restrictions and people unhappy with their partners during lockdown seeking affairs as the country returns to normal.

IllicitEncounters.com spokeswoman Jessica Leoni said: “We have seen a rise in cheating over the last year throughout most of Cheshire, particularly since the start of autumn with almost all adults double jabbed.

“Record numbers of people came back from their summer holidays miserable and looking for excitement after 18 months of being bored and stuck at home with their partners.

“We have enjoyed the busiest year in our history with women in particular looking to start afresh and joining in unprecedented numbers.

“The cheating surge will continue as more of us return to the office in the run-up to Christmas. Adulterers often use work as a way to cover up their affair.”

The figures are based on IllicitEncounters’ own extensive data on the numbers of people in Britain cheating.

The interactive Infidelity Index allows users to search a city, town or postcode to discover how many people are having affairs in any locality.

Find the figure for any postcode in North Wales - based on data from one million postcodes - at https://www.illicitencounters.com/map/standalone