Health and charities

Stark and widespread health inequalities in the UK represent a striking social injustice. The impact that social factors have on our health mean that even charities that are not explicitly pursuing a health-focused mission are helping to keep people well. Leading expert on the social determinants of health Sir Michael Marmot introduces new research from NPC on the important role the voluntary sector plays in helping us live longer, healthier, lives.

The UK's life expectancy is falling behind other countries in Europe, according to new analysis. There are plenty of things that affect the nation's health, which means even the work of non-health charities may be helping keep people well. At NPC we're working on a guide to help voluntary sector organisations better understand the social determinants of health. Katie Boswell explains.

NPC and 24 leading charities have written to the Secretary of State for Health, Jeremy Hunt MP, asking for his backing and for a Health Data Lab. Read more about what this means and why it would help improve the impact of services on people’s health.

What does cross-sector collaboration in health and care look like in a particular place? NPC has captured learning from the initial stages of the The Richmond Group of Charities' work in Somerset, which explored what new ways of working across sectors in a specific geographic area could look like. Here we share three lessons from the work.

If the unofficial motto of the charity sector is ‘we do what needs to be done’—then right now with coronavirus we face an unprecedented challenge of working out what does need to be done. We need to adapt and ask how those who support us can also help

With the publication of the Marmot Review 10 Years On, Dan Corry reflects on how the social determinants of health are deep and structural, how charities of all kinds can play a role in overcoming them and what NPC is doing in this area.

Charlotte Augst, Chief Executive, National Voices discusses their plans to explore what’s happening in local communities, and identify the key issues and solutions for effective social prescribing.

With government paralysed by Brexit, Dan Corry, NPC CEO, finds hope in the potential for collaboration between charities and the health service.

High profile campaigns have raised awareness of a range of mental health problems and the broad need to do something to help people who experience them. But is this enough and how do we move past awareness to make sure the support is available for people who need it?

Carin Eisenstein, NPC Consultant, looks back at the last year in mental health, highlighting the vital role charities have played in promoting awareness and the need for private funding—now more than ever.

NPC has been working with the Maddox Group of CEOs of NHS charities. Our work with them points towards both the value that these charities have in themselves and lessons for others in the voluntary sector who want to work with the NHS and understand their impact.

The NHS has always been supported, in one way or another, by charities. Now, as we face a rising tide of conditions whose origins lie in social issues of loneliness, inactivity and the like, Iona Joy, NPC Head of Charities, argues the two sectors should formalise their alliance.

How do health charities drive change for patients when the NHS is under pressure from every direction? It’s time to diversify who and how you influence, says Kay Boycott from Asthma UK.

On the 70th anniversary of the founding of the NHS, we launch the first of three blog examining the relationship between the health service and the voluntary sector. Authored by Alex Fox, CEO of Shared Lives Plus, this first piece explores the potential for the voluntary sector to offer support for a growing number of people with long term needs, where the line between health and social care blurs.