January 2023 saw the launch of The Health Equity Network. Now, one year on, we have over 1500 active members from across the UK who are working together to achieve new standards of health with innovative, collaborative, and intersectional approaches to the most complex health issues. We have monthly themed webinars to highlight various issues across the health equity spectrum with engaging speaker panels comprised of Network Members and external experts alike.
The Network also recently saw the first Health Equity Network National Conference held in October 2023 in Birmingham, England. The Network hosted over 200 people from across the UK to attend a day of keynote speeches, panel discussions, and themed breakout sessions run by members of the Health Equity Network.
These breakout groups included housing inequality, racism and discrimination and health, the role of economic partnerships in health policy as well as primary care services and health inequalities and more. The panellists of the day included Professor Sir Michael Marmot, Professor Bola Owolabi, Mr Pete Gladwell and Professor Kevin Fenton, and they gave commentary on how the Network could help to grow a movement for health equity in the UK. This event was a great success, and our members from around the world were able to access the live stream of the day via YouTube. The feedback from the event was overwhelmingly positive, and members are actively looking for more opportunities to meet in person. We hope to be able to facilitate events to meet that demand.
This professional network provides an opportunity for organisations, both public and private sector, community and voluntary groups and individuals to share their work on health equity and to engage across the country with others with the same interests. The intention is to build momentum for health equity UK wide.
The idea for the network was born out of the recognition of a gap in the opportunity for organisations and communities across the UK to connect and collaborate with those working towards similar health equity goals. We aspire to encourage and support creative solutions to challenging health equity issues, and to engender partnerships that go beyond single disciplinary approaches.
Inequalities in health have been exposed and amplified during the COVID19 pandemic and will likely deepen further through the cost-of-living crisis. There is a great deal which local authorities, the community and voluntary sector, private sector and businesses can do to improve health equity.
The Institute of Health Equity has teamed up with Legal & General to create the Health Equity Network. It will function mainly as an online platform aimed at supporting increased public and private partnerships across the United Kingdom and encourage interdisciplinary problem solving on health equity.
If you think you or your organisation would want to be an active part of this network and benefit from the partnerships the Network hopes to support then register your interest through the form below, and share it amongst your colleagues and peers.
