New scheme aiming to make Oxfordshire 'healthier and fairer'

The initiative, which aims to tackle health inequalities, was officially launched with a visit from academic, researcher, and campaigner, Professor Sir Michael Marmot.

Organisations across Oxfordshire are collaborating with University College London's Institute of Health Equity on the two-year Marmot Place project.

Marmot Places are local areas that adopt the evidence-based principles and methodology developed by Sir Michael and his team to address the social determinants - the conditions in which someone is born, raised, lives, and works, and their age - of health and reduce health inequalities.

Professor Sir Michael Marmot (Image: Oxfordshire County Council) While a few other places in the country have become a Marmot Place, Oxfordshire is the first county council area to do so.

Councillor Liz Leffman, leader of Oxfordshire County Council, said: "Becoming a Marmot Place represents a commitment by the council towards reducing health inequalities.

"This new partnership will greatly benefit many lives in Oxfordshire and significantly advance our long-term goals of alleviating major health disparities and fostering healthier, more active, and safer communities."

The programme seeks to ensure social determinants provide a solid foundation for good health.

The partnership aims to evaluate and build on existing work, measure and tackle rural inequality, and utilise research to find solutions to health inequalities.

The new collaboration was launched with an event on November 25 in Rose Hill, Oxford.

Organisations from across the county were in attendance and signalled their commitment to the new partnership work.

Professor Sir Michael Marmot (right) attended an event in Rose Hill to launch the programme in Oxfordshire (Image: Oxfordshire County Council) Sir Michael said: "Despite being a county of relative wealth and good health, we know that is not the experience of all.

"The conditions in which many people are living harms health, particularly the least well-off and those of ethnic minority groups, who may experience racism and discrimination.

"The work we are launching today seeks to address the underlying causes of these problems and promote health equity for all."

The county council said the Marmot programme will both complement and build on the work already taking place locally to improve the health of people of all backgrounds, particularly those from disadvantaged communities.

By joining forces with the Institute of Health Equity, Oxfordshire organisations will also now be able to draw on the added expertise of the Marmot team at the institute as it seeks to deal with these inequalities.

The council added the new link-up will also help it to prioritise local resources, guide commissioning, and inform bids for relevant funding, all with the support of partners from the NHS, academia, and the third sector.