Public health - other support

Policy and reports

This section includes key strategic and standard documents which shape the current policy framework for clinical governance. The items on this page are specific to public health.

For the overarching national standards and strategies please refer to the four country overviews - England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The list of public health policies and reports below is arranged by country with the documents listed in date order. The most recent publications appear at the top of the list.

Some of the resources below may be in PDF format - see how to access PDF files.

England

New public health system

New public health system (2011)
This section of the Department of Health’s website, published December 2011,  provides further details on the design of the new public health system. These include the role and responsibilities of local government in public health, the operating model for the new executive agency Public Health England, and an overview of how the whole system will work.

A summary has been published by the Department of Health which lists key milestones for the transition to the new system – see The new public health system: summary (PDF 373.2KB).

A series of factsheets have been brought together by the Department of Health detailing the roles and responsibilities of local authorities in the new public health system -   see Public health in local government (PDF 579.75KB).

See also the message from the RCN Public Health Adviser in the website for the RCN Public Health Forum, and scroll down the Forum page to see an outline of the proposed changes to public health in England, the different stages and the RCN's contribution to discussions.

Public Health White Paper

Health Select Committee - Public health (2011)
This report from the House of Commons Health Select Committee, published in November 2011, presents a short background to the changes and current plans for the new public health system with conclusions and recommendations on each of the constituent parts of the reforms.

Healthy lives, healthy people: update and way forward (2011)
This follows on from the listening exercise for the Health and Social Care Bill. The document, published in July 2011 sets out the next steps and what is being done to tackle some of the concerns that were raised around the White Paper concerning the need to avoid fragmentation of services and the need to support the continued development of a strong specialist public health profession and the wider public health workforce.
To see the RCN’s response to this update see ‘Public health is vital for nation’s wellbeing’.

Healthy lives, healthy people White Paper: Our strategy for public health in England (2010)
The White Paper sets out the Government’s long-term vision for the future of public health in England. The vision includes the creation of Public Health England and strengthening local and national leadership. This section of the Department of Health website provides information about the White Paper and the consultation process on this and related consultations.

Annual reports of the Chief Medical Officer
These are reports on the state of public health delivered by the Chief Medical Officer. Each report also focuses on selected current health challenges and specific aspects of care. The most recent report is On the state of public health: annual report of the Chief Medical Officer 2009.

Fair society, healthy lives
This website is based around the Marmot Review report ‘Fair society, healthy lives’ published in 2010. The strategic review was tasked with identifying the evidence most relevant to underpinning future policy and action for addressing the health inequalities challenges facing England, and to show how this evidence could be translated into practice. The final report identifies six policy objectives. This website includes downloadable copies of the report and executive summary along with information about implementation and related activities including Sir Michael Marmot’s blog.

Health and wellbeing reports (2010)
Three reports from five independent experts focusing specifically on the prevention of ill-health. Topics considered by the reports include: what the role of the state should be in relation to people’s health and wellbeing; lessons we can learn about influencing healthier lifestyle choices from other fields such as behavioural economics, marketing and psychology; what the Department and the NHS can do to enhance delivery of frontline services to improve people’s health and wellbeing.

Be active, be healthy: a plan for getting the nation moving (2009)
This plan establishes a new framework for the delivery of physical activity alongside sport for the period leading up to the London 2012 Olympic Games, Paralympic Games and beyond. It includes a breakdown of the estimated health care related costs of physical inactivity. The plan sets out new ideas on how primary care trusts will engage with other bodies to identify and respond to the needs of local populations to improve levels of physical activity.

Tackling health inequalities: 10 years on (2009)
This report reviews developments in health inequalities over the last 10 years across government - from the publication of the Acheson report on health inequalities up to November 2008. It covers developments across government on the wider social determinants of health, and the role of the NHS. It provides an assessment of developments against the Acheson report and considers lessons learned and challenges for the future.

Health inequalities: progress and next steps (2008)
This sets out the Government's approach to achieving the 2010 health inequalities Public Service Agreement targets. It looks at the challenges still faced assessing what has worked and not worked and what needs to be done to sustain and develop a continual focus on health inequalities after 2010.

Choosing a better diet: A food and health action plan (2005) 
This document describes the Government's food and health action plan which builds on the strategy presented in 'Choosing health' and its delivery plan. It describes the aims and objectives of the plan and the time by which these will be achieved. There is an accompanying physical activity plan.

Choosing activity: a physical activity action plan (2005)
This document presents a summary of how the Government will deliver the physical activity commitments made in 'Choosing health'. It sets out a physical activity plan which is intended to encourage and co-ordinate the activities of a range of departments and organisations to promote increased participation in physical activity across England. There is an accompanying food and health action plan.

Shaping the future of public health: promoting health in the NHS (2005)
Jointly commissioned by the Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly Government, this defines the roles, functions and development needs of the multidisciplinary Public Health Workforce required for the delivery of 'Choosing health' in England and 'Health Challenge Wales'.

Securing good health for the whole population (2004)
This final report in a series chaired by Derek Wanless on longer term health trends focuses on preventive health care and the need to develop structures enabling people to be fully engaged in their own health improvements. The report makes recommendations around identifying key targets and using cost-effective and evidence-based interventions, where these exist, and piloting and evaluating promising interventions where evidence is less clear.

Liberating the public health talents of community practitioners and health visitors (2003)
This illustrates the contribution that all community practitioners and health visitors can make by using a public health approach in their practice. It describes the key principles of this approach and provides examples of how this is being implemented across different settings.

Tackling health inequalities: A Programme for Action (2003)
This document from the Department of Health describes a cross departmental strategy for tackling health inequalities based around four main themes - supporting families, mothers and children; engaging communities and individuals; preventing illness and providing effective treatment and care; addressing the underlying determinants of health. It sets out the plan for a three year period. Accompanying this are status reports for 2005 and 2007 which review developments against the targets set.

Northern Ireland

Chief Medical Officer annual reports
Annual reports on the health of the population in Northern Ireland. Each report focuses on a range of current issues in public health.

Caring for people beyond tomorrow - A strategic framework for the development of primary health and social care for individuals, families and communities in Northern Ireland (2005)
This sets out a vision to guide the development and delivery of future primary care and social care services in Northern Ireland, and presents a set of design principles and core values which underpin the vision. The vision involves making primary care services more accessible and responsive, encouraging more effective partnerships and integrated team working, and supporting individuals in taking more responsibility in managing their own health.

Nursing for public health: realising the vision (2005)
This report, published within the Chief Nursing Officers pages on the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety website, is the outcome of four years of joint working between nurses in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to develop a vision and action plan for strengthening the nursing contribution to public health.  It outlines a model for embedding public health into education and practice across the range of clinical areas and community settings in which nurses work.

Public health function review in Northern Ireland (2004)
Key objectives of this review were to establish an agreed vision for the role of the public health function in Northern Ireland, and to make recommendations to strengthen the future provision of the Public Health Function in Northern Ireland, particularly in meeting the challenges of implementing the Investing for Health strategy.

Investing for health (2002)
This strategy provides a framework for action presenting the goals objectives and targets for improving the health and well-being of all people in Northern Ireland and reducing health through effective partnership working at regional and local levels. The strategy identifies four priority settings where programmes for improving health can be developed, and underlines the importance of different kinds of partnership working at regional and local level.

Scotland

Health in Scotland - the Chief Medical Officer's annual reports
The reports touch on the challenges to health and health care over the previous year. They cover activity in the whole field of public health, in health improvement and health protection as well as health services but are not intended to be comprehensive accounts. The most recent annual reports published by the Scottish Government are Annual report 2009 and Annual report 2010.

Equally well: the report of the Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities (2008)
This area of the Scottish Government website presents this report and its supporting papers and the accompanying implementation plan. It also provides information about the test  sites which are taking a lead in delivering the Task Force's recommendations.

See also: Equally well implementation plan.

Better health, better care: action plan (2007)
This action plan describes a detailed programme of work to achieve its three main components of health improvement, tackling health inequality and improving the quality of health care. The section on improving Scotland's health sets out actions to increase healthy life expectancy in Scotland, reduce health inequalities, break the link between early life adversity and adult disease, and reduce smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and other risk factors to a healthier life.

Improving health in Scotland - the challenge (2003)
This document presents the first phase of a framework for delivering the policy for health improvement set out in 'Partnership for care'. It describes the actions that the Scottish Executive will undertake to achieve a more rapid rate of health improvement in Scotland and identifies a range of special focus programmes which encompass physical, social and mental aspects of health.

Wales

Chief Medical Officer’s annual reports
The Chief Medical Officer’s annual report provides 'an opportunity to reflect on the major health and health care issues that we face, and to maintain a transparent dialogue with the public and policy makers about public health'.

Public Health Wales: Public Health Wales strategy 2010-2015
This two page document sets out the ambition, purpose, values and strategic objectives of Public Health Wales for the next five years. Public Health Wales is an NHS organisation providing professionally independent public health advice and services to protect and improve the health and wellbeing of the population of Wales. The document presents seven strategic objectives and eight ways in which these objectives will be achieved. The next task will be to develop detailed work plans to underpin each of the seven strategic objectives.

Creating an active Wales (2009)
This document from the Welsh Assembly Government sets out a physical activity action plan for Wales. It presents the aims and targets and the actions required to achieve these aims. Underpinning themes which need to be addressed if the strategic aims are to be achieved are described along with a timetable of actions to support each of these themes.

Our healthy future (2009)
'Our healthy future' sets the strategic direction for public health in Wales. The two broad aims of the strategy are: "to improve quality and length of life" and "to promote good health on equal terms for everyone in Wales". This area of the Welsh Assembly Government's website provides further information on the 'Our healthy future' agenda and work in progress, and there is information about the state of health in Wales.  

Food and Fitness: promoting healthy eating and physical activity for children and young people in Wales. Five-year implementation plan (2006)
This implementation plan from the Welsh Assembly Government builds on a range of national strategies, initiatives and local programmes and provides a framework for integrating action on nutrition and physical activity for children and young people in Wales. It sets out a series of action plans for schools, in the community, for training, and for evaluation and dissemination under three headings 'What are we going to do?' 'Who?' and 'What and When?'. The report is made available on the Physical Activity and Nutrition Networks Wales website.

Shaping the future of public health: promoting health in the NHS (2005)
Jointly commissioned by the Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly Government, this defines the roles, functions and development needs of the multidisciplinary Public Health Workforce required for the delivery of 'Choosing health' in England and 'Health Challenge Wales'.