Liverpool is Building Healthier Environments

“For residents of Liverpool to live in thriving communities with safe, sustainable, affordable and quality homes that meet their needs and support their aspirations.”

This includes:

• a commitment to support 2,000 new homes a year,
• reduce the number of empty properties,
• tackle homelessness.
• 10,700 new homes have been built in the past five years. Just 11 percent are classed as affordable homes. The housing strategy highlights 20 percent (44,000) of properties in the city do not meet the “decent homes” definition.

The strategy is underpinned by four key themes. They are designed to improve people’s health and support the council’s net-zero ambitions:

The City Plan and Council Plan set out commitments to develop an economic city strategy. The strategy will be ambitious, inclusive for our resident and business communities. We will do this in partnership with key stakeholders. The council and partners want Liverpool to be a place of choice to locate, invest, work, and live. Liverpool should have a sustainable economy. The council wants to use the city’s strengths and assets to drive an economy that is diverse, competitive, and resilient. An economy that is socially equitable and environmentally responsible. The strategy aims to drive a fair, innovative, sustainable, and productive economy. Developing a city-wide strategic response to the long-term inequality, poverty and economic exclusion which many of the city’s residents face. This plan is about supporting people in Liverpool to thrive beginning with access to a good education. It is about the opportunity they are included in, options available to them and supporting better outcomes. This plan aims to be a driver for investment in Liverpool and ensure people stay, return and choose to live in Liverpool and build a strong and fair economy for all.

Our Liverpool City Council health in all policies approach continues to develop with new opportunities being identified to ensure healthy policies are embedded in all aspects of what the council does. Collaborative work underway includes around education, regeneration, active travel and sustainability policies and plans.

In September our Advertising and Sponsorship policy and Healthy Weight policy was approved at Cabinet. The policy applies to Council-owned advertising space across the city and formally restricts adverts that include food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar. It builds on an existing framework that includes bans on tobacco, gambling and alcohol advertising. This moves us towards improving the food environment in Liverpool.

2040 report referenced earlier shows that unless we act now over 15,000 children will be overweight or obese by 2040.

The risks to physical and mental health from overweight and obesity are great and include a range of serious non-communicable diseases.

The marketing of high fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) food and drink is increasingly common in public spaces, on television and online. It is without doubt, a major driver in the obesity epidemic.

We know that this marketing (via a range of studies, many of which led by colleagues at University of Liverpool) influences choices people make. There are studies that suggest this influential advertising ‘undermines parents’ (Boyland et al) when trying to ensure their children eat healthier foods.

Adolescents in the UK get nearly two-thirds of their daily calories from foods high in fat, salt and sugar, with consumption highest among those from deprived backgrounds.

We need to make the healthy choice the easy choice. The evidence suggests that if we can restrict exposure to these adverts, we can make a difference. The impact of implementing the new policy will be evaluated with support of partners across the city.

The implementation of the Advertising and Sponsorship policy and Healthy Weight policy is just one aspect of a whole systems approach to improving the health of our population. This work includes:

• New prevention focused healthy weight service commissioned and starts in January 2025. This will include Tier 1 and 2 provision that will support children, young people, families and adults (including pregnant women). The intervention will empower them with the tools and support needed to achieve a healthier weight.
• Liverpool Good Food Taskforce – range of stakeholders delivering the Liverpool Good Food Plan, with ambitions centred around;
  • Addressing food insecurity.
  • Improving access to, and take up of, healthy, nutritious food.
• Liverpool Whole Systems Strategy, Healthy Weight Declaration – which takes a focus on –
  • Improving breastfeeding uptake and continuation rates -Improving access to, and uptake of healthy start
  • Improving food environment, vending, advertising, better access to good food.
  • Support and upskill across communities to be able to cook and prepare healthy meals.

Other local authorities across Cheshire and Merseyside have or are in the process of implementing similar Advertising and Sponsorship policies. We are now working with other local authorities and partners including Liverpool Combined Authority to extend the policy beyond Council owned assets to transport links and beyond.

The public health team will work with other teams from across the council including highways and culture to ensure we have a clear approach to healthier advertising with partners, and advertisers, using the policy. This will include a built-in formal evaluation of its impact. We will continue are work with other local authorities and partners to expand this approach beyond council owned advertising to space to maximise impact.