Health: Creating healthy places through planning

Healthy places support both quality of life and long life expectancy, but it is critical they are inclusive of and accessible to all, to combat the serious issue of health inequality.

Planning can and must take a central role in this.

In this report we investigate how some local authorities in England are creating healthy places through planning, despite severe funding restraints, limited capacity and an unsupportive regulatory environment.

We look at three examples – East Sussex County Council, Leeds City Council and Oxfordshire County Council – and hear from the key people behind them.

Through these case studies, we learn that delivering places where everyone can hope to enjoy good health requires health-focused policies in planning documents, but also demands strong leadership, cross-sector collaboration and innovative mechanisms of delivery.

The report also sets out a series of recommendations to help other local authorities create healthy places through planning.

Although spotlighting the work happening within councils, this report’s three case studies and subsequent recommendations for best practice also aim to equip developers with a deeper understanding of the importance of designing for health and the methods of working that facilitate this, as well as improved ways of collaborating with local authorities to deliver healthy places.