Agenda item

The Service Lead Public Health introduced the report that summarised the Annual Director of Public Health Report (ADPHR) 2019: Berkshire – A Good Place to Work, which focussed on workplace health and wellbeing.

The Director of Public Health had a statutory responsibility to produce an ADPHR.  The report aimed to inform residents of health issues in their community, inspire action and guide decision makers’ priorities, and ultimately reduce local health inequalities.

This year the report focussed on work and health.  The topic had been selected due to the strong relationship between work, health and the opportunities in workplaces to take action to improve health and wellbeing.

Evidence showed that ‘good work’ improved health and wellbeing, by connecting people, providing a stable income, social interaction and a sense of identity and purpose.  Unemployment was associated with an increased risk of poorer health, including limiting long-term illness, heart disease, poor mental health and health harming behaviour.

The relationship between work and health was symbiotic: good work was good for people’s health, and people in the best health were more productive and good for business.  The benefit of improving workplace health extended beyond the individual worker.  For an employer, a healthy resilient workforce took fewer sick absences, had better productivity and longer careers before retiring.  From an economic and wider societal view, an unhealthy workforce could lead to increased healthcare costs, increased informal caregiving, increased long-term sickness and a loss in productivity.

The key messages of the report were:

• The workplace was an ideal venue for improving health.  Workplace health was a win:win for population health, employees and employers.
• Berkshire had relatively high levels of employment; and the top industries were professional, scientific and technical, information and communication.  Berkshire had a higher proportion of people in managerial and professional positions than the average in the England.
• There was evidence that improving the health of the workforce assisted productivity.  Workplaces were changing and there was a need to adapt approaches to meet the needs of flexible employees and freelancers.
• Evidence showed that engaged and committed organisational leadership, working closely with employees was critical for success. 
• Access to good work was easier for some – employment rates varied depending on gender, ethnicity and disability.
• Evidence showed that people in Slough had significantly more years of life in poor health than the national average.

Following the conclusion of the presentation, the Chair invited Members to comment and ask questions.

During the course of a wide-ranging discussion, the following points were raised:

• A Member asked what was being done to discourage people from smoking and vaping.  The Service Lead Public Health explained that smokers were being encouraged to vape rather than smoke.  Evidence indicated that vaping was 95% less harmful than cigarette smoking.
• Concern was raised that people in Slough had significantly more years of life in poor health compared to the rest of Berkshire.  A Member queried why this was the case.  It was explained that the causes of this were complex and related to lifestyle choices, income, education, housing and factors such as air pollution and the built environment.
• A Member stressed the importance of promoting the Council’s leisure facilities, and ensuring that usage was affordable for residents.  The Service Lead Public Health reported that the Health Beliefs and Physical Activity Research project had indicated that one of the barriers preventing people from using the leisure facilities was the perception that gyms were for ‘lycra-clad, perfect looking people’.  To tackle this, a marketing campaign depicting imagines of ‘everyday’ people was being rolled out.
• It was noted that cancer was one of the most common causes of illness and death in Berkshire.  A Member asked why this was the case.  It was explained that smoking was the single biggest cause of preventable diseases. 
• A Member requested some comparator information regarding the numbers of people in Slough and nationally living with disabilities.
• Referring to the information provided in the presentation slides, a Member queried why musculoskeletal disorders were so high in Berkshire.  It was explained that increasingly people were working in sedentary jobs, and sitting for prolonged periods had a detrimental impact on people’s health.  It was explained that the Council promoted ‘active movement’ to employees, for example encouraging staff to stand up from their desks every 20 minutes.
• It was reported that Slough Wellbeing Board had adopted workplace health as one of its key priorities.  The Council’s Public Health Team had recently recruited a person to promote work place health and potentially complete a national accreditation scheme.  The Panel agreed that regular updates from the Slough Wellbeing Board would be welcome.

On behalf of the Panel, the Chair thanked the Service Lead Public Health for presenting the report.

Resolved –

(a)  That the Annual Director of Public Health Report 2019: Berkshire – A Good Place to Work be noted.

(b)  That regular update reports from the Slough Wellbeing Board be provided to the Health Scrutiny Panel.

(c)  That the Service Lead Public Health be requested to circulate to the Panel comparator data regarding the numbers of people in Slough and nationally living with disabilities.