Transport and urban professionals can help to put 'health in all polices', says PHE

In England today, we are facing some wicked health challenges, says Public Health England (PHE). In its latest report, Implementing Health in All Policies at a local level, it outlines how these issues – many of which are exacerbated by poor mobility and poor living options – can be tackled. Increasingly, transport and urban professionals are undertanding that they have major roles to play in the nation's public health.

PHE says: Challenges like poor mental health, diabetes and obesity are problems with numerous, interlinking causes and no easy solutions, and they affect certain sectors of the population more than others. Evidence shows that these inequalities are largely determined by living conditions and wider social, economic, environmental, cultural and political factors (collectively referred to as ‘wider determinants of health’). The determinants of health are controlled by influences and actions outside the health sector. From experience around the world, policymakers know that re-shaping people’s economic, physical, social and service environments can support wellbeing, healthy behaviours and boost local growth. Health in All Policies (HiAP) is a collaborative approach to improving the health of all people by incorporating health considerations into decisionmaking across sectors, policy and service areas, and addressing the wider determinants of health.