Agenda item

The Board will receive a report on Creating Healthy and Sustainable Places. 

The Health and Wellbeing Board is asked to; Endorse, support and build upon the work on the ‘Creating Healthy and Sustainable Places: A Public Health and Sustainability Framework for West Sussex’.

18.1   The West Sussex County Council Programme Manager, Public Health and Sustainability presented her report on Creating Healthy and Sustainable Places: A Public Health and Sustainability Framework for West Sussex.  The Board was reminded that the council held a responsibility for delivering positive health and wellbeing outcomes for its residents,  addressing the wider determinants of health which includes shaping the built and natural environments.  This Framework provided public health guidance to decision makers on creating healthy and sustainable places in West Sussex in order to help address health and social inequalities and mitigate negative health impacts and consequences.  In presenting the report, the following key points were made;

·       A health in all policies approach was identified as an opportunity to reduce health inequalities and maximise sustainability. The environment was recognised as a major determinant of health and wellbeing with the provision of healthy and sustainable places to live, work and play;

·       The use of the Framework was seen as a support to influencing policy to deliver healthier lives and a consistent, holistic approach to producing good quality places for communities both now and in the future;

·       It was reported that this approach had been endorsed by Public Health England and was noted as innovative and cross cutting with a clear statement on the commitment of the council to healthy and sustainable place making across the County;

·       The Framework had gone out for two round of consultation with internal and external partners. This included the residents of West Sussex, all of the District and Boroughs, NHS Estates, Public Health England, Sport England, two major developers, the Voluntary Sector and Healthwatch.

18.2   In receiving this report Board Members;

·       welcomed the Framework as a good piece of work which supported the Health in all Policies agenda that had been aspired to over 3 or 4 years;

·       stated that the Board would need to consider how policy could be turned into action and embedded;

·       acknowledged the importance of the environmental impact on Health and Wellbeing in helping to deliver positive health outcomes;

·       recognised that the Framework was not a statutory document and therefore there was the challenge of influencing planning policy and decision making as well as the challenge of managing compliance from developers;

·       noted that the Framework supported the Sport England Active Strategy of producing physical and mental wellbeing, individual development, social and community development and economic development;

·       referenced the Marmot Review Ten Years On which examined Health Equity progress and decline since 2010. Board Members were keen that, although ambitious, the Creating Healthy Places Framework be used to influence positive outcomes and tackle unacceptable health gaps;

·       noted the Creating Healthy Places Framework as an important document, despite its non-statutory status, as a resource that can be actively used to help tackle and prevent health inequalities.

18.3   The Interim Director of Public Health thanked the Programme Manager, Public Health and Sustainability for her excellent work.  It was stated that the Framework was a forerunner in the Country and Board Members agreed that the Creating Healthy Places Framework is  ambitious, collaborative and partnership driven and were keen to act upon the guide to collectively take this work forward and make it part of core business.

18.4   In summing up, the Interim Director of Public Health thanked the District and Borough Councils, who were already using this guidance, despite its non-statutory status and thanked Board Members for their support.

18.5   Resolved – that the Health and Wellbeing Board endorse, support and agree to build upon the work on the Creating Healthy and Sustainable Places: A Public Health and Sustainability Framework for West Sussex.