The UK government’s levelling up agenda is set to fail in its mission to address inequalities unless it tackles the root causes of poor health, according to a new study.
The research, led by the University of Bristol and University of Bath, presents policy recommendations to tackle the root causes of poor health which hold the key to overcome inequalities.
The study, published in the journal Contemporary Social Science, used data from interviews with 132 key government and industry professionals to assess if the 12 ‘missions’ published in the Levelling Up White Paper will achieve better quality of urban living to improve public health.
Using seven principles that could underpin a successful ‘levelling up’ strategy for healthy urban developments, researchers recommend how the Government might address the wider determinants of health in the implementation of its ambitions.
These include establishing a cross-government commitment for health, led by the Prime Minister’s office, further local devolution of powers, simplified means of funding, and increased use of evidence from local communities and health sources for decision-making.
Sarah Ayres, Professor of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Bristol, said: “Preventing poor health through tackling the wider determinants is critical to ‘level up’ the country but this requires a change in current funding, increased local powers and greater attention to local voices alongside health evidence.
“We know, from our large-scale, qualitative and transdisciplinary dataset alongside a review of the literature on health and the urban environment, that ambitions to reduce inequalities and improve life-expectancy are unlikely to be met. Our recommendations give seven clear actions to help achieve better health outcomes through better quality of urban developments.”
