‘If you could do one thing…’ Nine local actions to reduce health inequalities is a collection of opinion pieces on health inequalities from leading social scientists. Each of the authors has written an article, drawing on the evidence base for their particular area of expertise, identifying one policy intervention that they think local authorities could introduce to improve the health of the local population and reduce health inequalities.
The report seeks to help local policymakers improve the health of their communities by presenting evidence from the social sciences that can help reduce inequalities in health. With a foreword from Sir Michael Marmot, the report further explores what The Marmot Review confirmed: that socio-economic inequalities affect health outcomes and that there is a social gradient in health. In some senses this is a social sciences dialogue companion to The Marmot Review.
With the current structural changes to public health in England, the British Academy hopes that this report will be a useful source of information on the evidence base for local policymakers and Directors of Public Health.
Expert authors and their chapters:
- Professor Kate Pickett: Addressing Health Inequalities through Greater Social Equality at a Local Level: Implement a Living Wage Policy
- Professor Edward Melhuish: The Impact of Early Childhood Education and Care on Improved Wellbeing
- Professor Danny Dorling: 20mph Speed Limits for Cars in Residential Areas, by Shops and Schools
- Professor Clare Bambra: Tackling Health-Related Worklessness: A ‘Health First’ Approach
- Professor Kwame McKenzie: Using Participatory Budgeting to Improve Mental Capital at the Local Level
- Professor Tarani Chandola and Dr Andrew Jenkins: The Scope of Adult and Further Education for Reducing Health Inequalities
- Professor James Nazroo: Ethnic Inequalities in Health: Addressing a Significant Gap in Current Evidence and Policy
- Professor Hal Kendig and Professor Chris Phillipson: Building Age-Friendly Communities: New Approaches to Challenging Health and Social Inequalities
- Professor Alan Maynard: The Role of Cost-Effectiveness Evidence in Reducing Inequality
The collection was published by the British Academy in January 2014.