Making an investment in the grant for public health

Since the 2015–2016 fiscal year, the grant funding for public health has been reduced by 28% on a real-terms per person basis.Additional cash, which is limited in time, has been allotted to local authorities for the purpose of providing smoking assistance and services, as well as treatment for substance abuse and alcoholism. When this additional expenditure is taken into consideration, the overall spending for public health has decreased by 21% on a real-terms per person basis since the 2015–2016 fiscal year.

We predict that some of the most significant decreases in spending over this time period will be for services related to sexual health (40 percent), advice related to public health (35 percent), and services related to drugs and alcohol for young people (31 percent). There is a strong correlation between living in locations that are socioeconomically impoverished and having poor health. A girl who is born in the 10% of local areas that are the most poor is projected to have a life expectancy that is twenty years shorter than a girl who is born in the region that is the least deprived.

On the other hand, real-term cuts to the grant on a per-person basis have more often than not been more severe in more impoverished regions. The reduction in the grant (which includes funding for new drug and alcohol treatment as well as smoking services and support) has been one of the greatest in Blackpool, which is classified as the most deprived upper tier local authority in England. Since 2015/16, the award has been reduced by £27 in real terms per person.

The grant-funded public health interventions carried out by local authorities offer an exceptional value for the money, with the cost of public health interventions amounting to £3,800 for every additional year of good health that is gained in the population. When compared to the cost of £13,500 that was incurred as a result of interventions by the NHS, this is three to four times cheaper. Note: The most recent change to this page was made on April 8th, 2024. The ONS published the GDP deflator in March 2024, which includes forecasts for the GDP deflator according to the most recent OBR budget and Public Health Grant allocations announced on February 5, 2024. This research makes advantage of the fact that the ONS published the GDP deflator.