Climbing ladders: From treatment to prevention (2025)

Inequalities are unfair and avoidable differences that people face due to a range of factors and circumstances they experience. These can include things like where they live, go to school, the work they do, their income and housing situation. Other factors include age, gender, and ethnicity. All these things and others determine how people experience life and the opportunities that are open to us, in particular the opportunity to achieve good health and wellbeing.

This is recognised in the work of Sir Michael Marmot, whose reports (refs) have shown that the impact of inequalities falls most heavily on those who are less affluent and less able to navigate the complexities of the systems society builds. His policy objectives show where action should be focused to reduce inequality and improve equity. This is important because without conscious action, lives will continue to be cut short, as those most in need of support in our borough continue to have lower life expectancy and live more of their shorter lives in poor health.

Marmot's policy objectives:

1. Give every child the best start in life
2. Enable all children, young people, and adults to maximise capabilities
3. Create fair employment and good work for all
4. Ensure a healthy standard of living for all
5. Create and develop healthy and sustainable places and communities
6. Strengthen the role and impact of ill-health prevention
7. Tackle racism, discrimination, and their outcomes
8. Pursue environmental sustainability and health equity