Agenda item

The Chairman welcomed Professor Kevin Fenton, Director of Health and Wellbeing at Public Health England, and invited him to address the meeting.

Professor Fenton began by describing some of the transformations that have been made over the last year, which include the Rewiring Public Services campaign and the introduction of Health and Wellbeing boards in local authorities. He explained why health and wellbeing is so important, particularly with regards to the strain on public services and social outcomes when it is neglected. He also displayed the main causes of ill-health and demonstrated how they directly link to the main forms of disability and the major killers across the population. Professor Fenton thinks local authorities are well-placed to make these connections and invest across the life-course.

Professor Fenton described four further transformations he would like to see over the next year:

1.    The development of a national health and wellbeing plan and a shared narrative.

2.    Focusing on a few of the largest challenges in public health and tackling them well so progress is made on premature mortality.

3.    Better sharing of best practice so we can concentrate resources on interventions that are known to work.

4.    Better linkage between creating healthy people and creating healthy places.

Professor Fenton finished by mentioning two ideas for better public health – implementing lower speed limits in urban areas, and investing more in green spaces.

Members discussed the following points:

·         The consultation process for the Health & Wellbeing Framework which is being published in the summer.

·         The difficulty for politicians in investing in long-term outcomes associated with public health.

·         The process by which Public Health England influences government policies.

·         The size of Health & Wellbeing boards.

·         The relevance of the Troubled Families programme to the public health agenda.

·         The changing status of Directors of Public Health.

·         The difficulty of integrating the clinical approach with the social and structural approach.