Committees

Prevention in health and social care

Inquiry

The Health and Social Care Committee has announced ten themes to be examined in its major new inquiry into preventing ill-health. The subjects, ranging from early years and childhood to alcohol and gambling, were chosen after MPs received more than 600 submissions from researchers and organisations involved in preventative healthcare.

The inquiry will examine social and environmental factors, for example what living in a healthy place should look like, from housing and indoor air pollution to the number of fast food shops. Access to sexual and reproductive health services, how to promote good mental health, sleep and addressing poor diet are among other areas to be considered. 

Health and Social Care Committee Chair said:

“Whether it’s the air you breathe or the food you put on your plate, there’s an impact on your health. While we can take action as individuals to stay well, the environment we live in has an enormous impact so what should a healthy place look like?

“This inquiry will be looking at a wide range of factors and asking what steps can be taken to prevent people slipping into ill-health.

“With health and social care services under extreme pressure, this is a crucial moment to identify what can be done to improve health outcomes for people in the longer term. I would argue the future sustainability of the NHS rests on us getting that right.”

The full list of topics that the Committee will be considering in the inquiry: healthy places; vaccination; health inequalities; mental health and wellbeing; healthy eating and obesity; smoking, drugs, alcohol, and gambling; sexual health; early years and childhood; cancer prevention; other major conditions.

Learn more about the submissions received in the first phase of the inquiry.

This inquiry is no longer accepting evidence

The deadline for submissions was Wednesday 8 February 2023.

Upcoming events

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No upcoming events scheduled

Past events

Monday 20 May 2024
3:45pm Public
Prevention in health and social care - Oral evidence 20 May 2024
3:45pm
  • Sir Ian Gilmore (Chair at Alcohol Health Alliance)
  • Alice Wiseman (Vice President at Association of Directors of Public Health and Director of Public Health for Gateshead and Newcastle)
  • Ailsa Rutter OBE (Director at Fresh and Balance)
4:45pm
  • Adrian Chiles, TV presenter and author of The Good Drinker
Room 8, Palace of Westminster
Tuesday 6 February 2024
9:30am Private
10:00am Public
Prevention in health and social care - Oral evidence 6 February 2024
10:00am
  • Andy Tighe (Director of Strategy and Policy at The British Beer and Pub Association)
  • Karen Tyrell (Chief Executive at Drinkaware)
  • Sandra Ionno Butcher (Chief Executive at The National Organisation for FASD)
  • Matt Lambert (Chief Executive at The Portman Group)
10:45am
  • Hazel Cheeseman (Deputy Chief Executive at Action Against Smoking)
  • Asma Khalil (Vice President for Academia and Strategy at The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG))
  • Professor Peter Hajek (Director of Health and Lifestyle Research Unit at Wolfson Institute of Population Health Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry Queen Mary University of London)
Room 5, Palace of Westminster
Monday 5 February 2024
4:15pm Private
4:30pm Public
Prevention in health and social care - Oral evidence 5 February 2024
4:30pm
  • Professor Javed Khan OBE
Room 16, Palace of Westminster
Wednesday 18 October 2023
9:30am Private
10:00am Public
Prevention in health and social care - Oral evidence 18 October 2023
10:00am
  • Dr Mark Green (Reader in Health Geography at University of Liverpool)
  • Julia Thrift (Director of Healthier Place-making at Town and Country Planning Association)
10:45am
  • Chris Naylor (Senior Fellow in Health Policy at The King's Fund)
  • Simon Reeve (Deputy Director, Public Health Systems and Workforce at Office for Health Improvement and Disparities)
The Wilson Room, Portcullis House

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  • Email: hsccom@parliament.uk
  • Phone: (general enquiries) 020 7219 6182 | 020 7219 3138 (media enquiries)
  • Address: Health and Social Care Committee, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA