Research and analysis

Healthy High Streets: good place making in an urban setting

Information for local decision makers examining how high streets are used as an asset to improve the overall health of local communities.

Documents

Healthy High Streets: good place making in an urban setting

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Healthy High Streets: good place making in an urban setting - practice resource summary

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Details

Public Health England (PHE) commissioned the UCL Institute of Health Equity to synthesise the latest and most relevant evidence for local decision makers, built environment professionals (for example planners, urban designers, landscape architects), town managers, public health professionals, and others involved in implementing street design principles on the health and wellbeing benefits of making high streets more inclusive, safe and healthier, particularly in areas of high deprivation.

This review provides a rapid assessment of evidence relating to pedestrian friendly, healthy high streets in urban settings, with specific reference to design interventions and street furniture. Evidence relating to both children and adults is considered, alongside groups who may have specific needs or preferences such as older people, younger people, disabled people (considering specific impairments where relevant) and different ethnic groups.

The review illustrates how, across a broad range of local stakeholders, a greater understanding of how place and people interact could help realise the potential of our high streets, and contribute to health and economic gains of our local communities.

Spatial Planning for Health: An evidence resource for planning and designing healthier places

Homes for health: Strategies, plans, advice, and guidance about the relationship between health and the home

Active travel: a briefing for local authorities)

Everybody active, every day: a framework to embed physical activity into daily life

Obesity and the environment briefing: increasing physical activity and active travel and regulating the growth of fast food

Local action on health inequalities: Improving access to green space

Sustainability and public health: a guide to good practice

Health and wellbeing: a guide to community-centred approaches

Updates to this page

Published 17 January 2018
Last updated 17 January 2018 + show all updates
  1. Practice Resource Summary document added

  2. First published.

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