Councils all over the country understand how the quality of housing affects the health and wellbeing of their residents. Poor housing costs the NHS at least £2.5 billion a year in treating people with illnesses directly linked to living in cold, damp and dangerous homes.
Treating children and young people injured by accidents in the home costs A&E departments across the United Kingdom around £146 million a year. Among the over 65s, falls and fractures account for 4 million hospital bed days each year in England, costing £2billion.
Over 25,000 people die each year in the UK as a result of living in cold temperatures much of this is due to living in poorly heated homes. Public health made the formal transfer to local government in April 2013, and in the subsequent months great strides have been made to tackle the wider social and economic determinants of poor health. This resource commissioned by the LGA describes how public health in a number of councils has started to use the opportunities of a local government setting to improve health and wellbeing.
The case studies show a range of ways in which public health in councils is approaching health and housing. They include councils spread across England, covering both rural and urban environments and with varying levels of deprivation and affluence.
- Published by:
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LGA
- Reference code:
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L14 - 85