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Equity Action has received funding from the European Union in the Framework of the Health Programme
Briefing for Directors of Public Health
European Structural Funds (SFs)
Hamira Sultan, Specialty Registrar in Public Health, Department of Health
Justine Cawley, Justine Cawley Associates
Ray Earwicker, International Lead, Health Inequalities Unit, Department of Health
Jane Connor, Assistant Director Health Legacy, NHS North East London and the City
Simon How, Senior Public Health Programme Manager, East of England Public Health Directorate
Paula Wheeler, Public Health Manager, NHS North West Offices
Hamira Sultan, SpR Public Health on behalf of English Member State
Contact: Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
December, 2012
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Introduction
The Department of Health, together with a small group of NHS Public Health professionals representing the
North West, East of England and London regions, are working on Equity Action, a European Union-funded
joint action programme to support the 22 Member States, regions and other stakeholders in action to
tackle health inequalities.One particular work package aims to raise the profile of European Structural
Funds (SFs) with Public Health and health service providers. This work is being co-ordinated by
EuroHealthNet.
Within the UK, the current round of SFs made £10.6 billion available between 2007 and 2013 for bidders to
access funds to improve:



Innovation and enterprise,
Employment and skills,
Environmental and community sustainability
SFs are broadly divided into two categories:


European Social Funds (ESF) focus on training and employability, and these funds are managed by
the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP)
European Regional and Development Funds (ERDF) focus on regeneration and enterprise, and
these funds are managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
More information can be found at the following websites:
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/esf/
http://www.communities.gov.uk/regeneration/regenerationfunding/europeanregionaldevelopment/
A factsheet on how SFs have been used in the UK can be found here:
H:\DH\WP5
Background\factsheet SF in the UK.pdf
European Structural Funds offered the opportunity to tackle health inequalities through addressing the
social determinants of poor health, but so far in the UK there has been little engagement from NHS
organisations in bidding for these resources. The Department of Health is now fully engaged with
preparations for the next funding round for 2014 to 2020. This offers an opportunity for the NHS and in
particular Public Health to have an input into defining programme objectives so that health inequalities can
be addressed. This briefing aims to provide DsPH and their teams with sufficient information on how they
can engage with and positively influence the use of SFs to help tackle health inequalities.
What DsPH can do locally
 Structural Funds have historically been utilised by Local Authorities, Universities and the Voluntary
Sector. Rather than attempting to access SFs independently, we therefore encourage DsPH to commit
some resource in finding out who in their LA and local Universities have been involved in bidding for SFs
and how Public Health can help strengthen these bids, whilst trying to address any local gaps in
Hamira Sultan, SpR Public Health on behalf of English Member State
Contact: Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
December, 2012
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need.We encourage Public Health colleagues to convey the added value that PH can bring to any bid
with respect to magnifying impact, measuring impact and project evaluation.
 The Marmot Review clearly makes the case for action on the social determinants of health including
giving children the best start in life, creating fair employment and promoting sustainable communities.
All are well within the remit of SFs and PH colleagues should use this as a case for greater involvement in
applying for these funds.
 We also ask that Public Health professionals talk about ‘health’ in different terms – health is normally
understood as health care services when we have spoken with other government departments, which
does not fall within the remit of SFs within the UK. We therefore need to be talking about health in
terms of wellness, equity, sustainability, resilience and social determinants when engaging with other
sectors to access SFs.
 Some tools for Public Health to make use of when conversing with other sectors include:
o ‘Health in All Policies (HiAP)’ – a global strategy for making health central to employment, education
and social policy. This has been endorsed by the EU Treaty, obliging all EU policies to adhere to the
HiAP approach. See below for details:
http://www.health-inequalities.eu/HEALTHEQUITY/EN/policies/health_in_all_policies/
o ‘Let’s start a conversation about health….without talking about healthcare’ – this is a short video
produced in Canada which highlights the importance of the social determinants when thinking about
health, and tries to encourage people to separate health from health care. The video can be accessed
at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gqla3a3rM6Q
What DsPH and their teams can do collectively at a national level
For the UK, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) are negotiating the funds for the next
programme period (which runs from 2014 – 2020), with the European Commission. This is an opportunity
for the NHS, and in particular Public Health, to have an input into defining programme objectives so that
health inequalities can be addressed. The Department of Health, together with representatives from the
London, North West and East of England regions are making a strong case for health to become a cross
cutting theme within European SFs to ensure that health outcomes are considered when projects are
funded.
Opportunities for DsPH and their teams include:
 Attending roadshows organised by BIS at specific locations throughout England which you should all be
aware of from a previous communication (see http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/economicdevelopment/european-structural-and-cohesion-funds for details)
 BIS have already held an informal consultation (April 2012) regarding the use of funds from 2014 -2020,
the results of which can be found here:
12-942-partnershipagreement-structural-funds-consultation-response.pdf
Although health colleagues did not input into this informal consultation, we do have an opportunity to feed
into the formal consultation due to take place in Spring 2013. The work we have done so far has been
calling for:
o Public Health colleagues to take an active role in developing and applying for SFs in conjunction with
other partners
Hamira Sultan, SpR Public Health on behalf of English Member State
Contact: Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
December, 2012
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o ‘Health’ (or wellbeing) to be treated as a cross cutting theme within the funds in line with equality of
opportunity and sustainability. For the 2007-2013 funding round in England, the London Region
developed ‘health as a cross cutting theme’ for projects bidding for funds from the European Social
Fund. This meant that projects had to demonstrate how they were going to impact on people’s
health, as well as increase employability/ skills. This is something we want to replicate on a wider
scale.
o Collectively we can make a strong case for this. We have already received interest from some areas
of England who want to partake in this consultation - if you are interested, please contact Hamira
Sultan on Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
 The team would be happy to speak with DsPH at their regional meetings in the new year if you have
further questions; again, contact Hamira Sultan for further information.
Actions for Department of Health
The DoH will be working with other government departments, especially DWP and CLG, to raise awareness
of the work we are doing with Equity Action. We will use these meetings to highlight the positives of
collaborative working with health colleagues. We will also be liaising with Public Health England and the
National Commissioning Board, both of which have a remit to tackle health inequalities, about how they
can support this agenda.
Linking in with EuroHealthNet
EuroHealthNet is a not for profit network of organisations, agencies and statutory bodies working to
promote health and equity by addressing the factors that determine health directly or indirectly. They
support their members’ work in EU and associated states through policy and project development,
networking and communications. EuroHealthNet have been co-ordinating the work we are doing on SFs
throughout European Member States, and will be sharing learning by producing an online tool to help
member states make successful applications for SFs. Further information is available below:
http://eurohealthnet.eu/
http://www.health-inequalities.eu/HEALTHEQUITY/EN/projects/equity_action/
http://www.health-inequalities.eu/
Further information
A copy of our Structural Funds review is embedded here:
England_Structural
funds review_Final_AMENDS.docx
For further information or to add your name to a distribution list for the future consultation, please
contact Hamira Sultan (SpR in Public Health, seconded at Department of Health) at
Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688.
Hamira Sultan, SpR Public Health on behalf of English Member State
Contact: Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
December, 2012
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Hamira Sultan, SpR Public Health on behalf of English Member State
Contact: Hamira.Sultan@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or 0121 612 1688
December, 2012