How can local planning authorities set themselves up for success to deliver health and wellbeing?

Emma Cooke, our external affairs manager, explores how local planning authorities can set themselves up for success by embedding health and wellbeing considerations into their policies and by fostering cross-sector partnerships.

Local planning authorities have a unique opportunity to shape environments that profoundly impact the health and wellbeing of their communities. And in doing so, they also have the opportunity to positively impact productivity levels and to reduce healthcare costs.

As Professor Sir Chris Whitty famously said: “If you look back over the last 150 years, more has been done for public health by proper planning than almost any other intervention, except, perhaps, vaccination”.

But how can councils maximise their chances of success in achieving positive health and wellbeing amongst their communities?

The power of taking things upstream

To have the greatest impact on outcomes for residents and communities, councils should embed health and wellbeing at the highest levels of policy making and strategy setting. This means ensuring health and wellbeing data and evidence (in all its forms) is an essential consideration in the setting of council priorities.

An upstream approach ensures that health and wellbeing factors are fundamental elements of the planning process and other council strategising, influencing decisions from the outset.

At the top of the policy hierarchy, corporate strategies set the overall vision and priorities for a council, making them the very best place to embed health and wellbeing goals. This upstream integration ensures that communities’ health and wellbeing will be core components of the planning process from the very beginning. Some local authorities are already taking a health in all policies approach and I for one am excited to see how this follows through to outcomes over the coming years.

And of course, the long-term spatial development framework that is the local plan is an essential tool for setting the priorities for planning locally. Spatial planning acknowledges and manages the complexity of the relationship between health, wellbeing, and the built environment. Including health and wellbeing priorities at this level will influence decisions made about development in an area, making them a crucial tool for the creation of environments that promote physical activity, mental wellbeing, and social cohesion. 

It’s never too late

While incorporating health and wellbeing at the highest policy levels is the ideal, it’s never too late to make a positive impact. If – like many others – your local authority has missed the boat in incorporating health and wellbeing at these top levels, there are still tools that you could and should be using to influence outcomes locally. 

Masterplans, local guidance and supplementary plans all offer opportunities to ensure that development decisions consider impacts and evidence on health outcomes. So too do design codes and design guides. While at the moment these area-wide tools are often being developed as a style guide to govern the aesthetics of a place, evidence-based design guides and codes can ensure that new buildings and public spaces promote healthier lifestyles. 

And even if health and wellbeing isn’t prioritised further upstream, there is still an opportunity at the decision-making stage for these crucial elements to be considered. Health impact assessments can be used to evaluate the potential health effects of proposed developments or policies and to raise red flags, for example.

The case for holistic collaboration

No matter at what level a local planning authority seeks to integrate health and wellbeing into planning, engaging in holistic collaboration with other council departments and organisations across the local area is key. Partnerships with public health departments, healthcare providers, housing associations, community organisations, and academic institutions can provide valuable data, expertise, and resources. 

Collaborative efforts can lead to innovative solutions and more effective interventions, providing better value for money. For example, partnerships with local universities can facilitate research on the health impacts of urban design, while collaboration with community organisations can ensure that planning processes are inclusive and responsive to local needs. Engaging public health colleagues, highways departments, transport and economics teams can help identify priorities and design interventions that address specific health issues.

The important message here? Planners are not alone!

It’s not just best practice

By embedding health and wellbeing considerations at every level of the policy hierarchy, from corporate strategies to design codes, and fostering holistic collaboration between departments and with local organisations, councils can set themselves up for success in creating environments that support and enhance the health of their communities. 

As the evidence linking the built environment to public health continues to grow, the integration of health and wellbeing into planning is not just a best practice – it’s a necessity for creating thriving, sustainable communities.

Our new guidance, published in partnership with Prior + Partners, explores the hierarchy of strategies, policies and plans that local planning authorities have in their toolbox for tackling health and wellbeing. It also explains the importance of incorporating evidence into decisions, and describes the holistic partnership approach that will maximise a local authority’s chances of success.