Elmhurst Primary School welcomed England's Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty, this week as he visited Buckinghamshire to see how local organisations are working together to improve health and wellbeing. The visit formed part of Professor Whitty's national programme gathering evidence for his next annual report, which is focusing on the opportunities and challenges facing health in small towns and rural communities.
At Elmhurst, he met staff and partners to learn about initiatives promoting healthier lifestyles from an early age, including smoke-free school gates, improving air quality and road safety, encouraging the use of parks and green spaces, and supporting healthy eating and wellbeing. The visit highlighted how schools play an important role in improving public health and preventing ill health from an early age.
Professor Whitty also met with partners from Buckinghamshire Council and Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust to learn more about innovative projects taking place across the county. These included integrated neighbourhood healthcare, proactive frailty clinics, and the challenges and opportunities of delivering healthcare in rural communities. The visit concluded at Buckingham Library, where Professor Whitty learned about the Healthy Libraries Programme and how libraries are supporting residents of all ages with trusted health information, wellbeing activities and community services.
Speaking after the visit, Isobel Darby, Buckinghamshire Council Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said:
“It’s been a pleasure to welcome Professor Whitty to Buckinghamshire today so he can see first-hand some of the important work on health and wellbeing we are delivering with our NHS partners in the county. Life in towns, villages and in rural settings creates different opportunities and challenges for health than more urban areas and being able to show how the council and the NHS addresses health and wellbeing through local services and policies has been really valuable. We are sure other areas can learn from many of the programmes and approaches we have adopted in Buckinghamshire and we are pleased to be helping to shape such an important national policy document.”
Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England, said:
“I was delighted to have the opportunity to visit Buckinghamshire, and to hear more about the excellent work happening to meet the needs of communities across the county. In rural areas, delivering healthcare and public health services to dispersed populations across a large geography can be a significant challenge. It was encouraging to see how strong partnership working – between the council, NHS, and other local partners – is helping to overcome these challenges and to improve health outcomes for local communities.”