Policy area: Health

Reports

Environmental sustainability in the NHS

This report from UK think tank The King's Fund examines a new approach to national leadership and accountability. This report argues that environmental sustainability is no longer a peripheral issue for the NHS but a central requirement for its future viability. Climate change is described as the greatest health risk of the 21st century, while...

Read more

Beyond caring: a new funding model for later-life social care

This report from UK think tank Re-State calls for a new Later Life Care Fund to replace England's failing model for funding for older people's social care. New research from Re:State sets out the case for a fundamental overhaul of how later-life social care is funded in England, arguing that the current model is unfair,...

Read more

Harm, hardship, and the price of inaction

This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation examines the costs of Scotland’s drug crisis. Scotland has a drug problem. The issue is likely to be a key one in the upcoming Scottish elections. Questions of the costs of potential interventions, and how worthwhile they are, will be central to decisions made on...

Read more

Family Hubs pregnancy grant pilot – Interim report and early lessons

This report from UK think tank Nesta presents early insights into the programme's implementation and the experience of participants so far. About the pilot In April 2025, Camden Council began piloting the Family Hubs Pregnancy Grant. This is an offer of £500 to low-income pregnant people. Parents are notified of the grant and given simple...

Read more

Mind the gaps – why restrictions on less healthy food and drink advertising fall short

This report from UK think tank Nesta explores the changing face of food and drink advertising. Obesity is a critical public health challenge in the UK, with two-thirds of adults now living with excess weight, and levels of childhood obesity in the UK among the highest in Europe. In January 2026, the government implemented new statutory restrictions on...

Read more

Evaluating the impact of nature-based therapy on veterans

This report from UK think tank PBE evaluates the impact of nature-based therapy on veterans. Veterans have some of the lowest levels of wellbeing, with around 160,000 self-reporting deep dissatisfaction with their lives. They may struggle with chronic health conditions, common mental health disorders and the anxiety which can come with unemployment and the feeling that their lives lack purpose....

Read more

Not my priority; how the public sees social care (and what can be done about it)

This report from UK think tank The King's Fund explores why public opinion and attitudes towards social care are a key barrier to change. Without adult social care support, a full life would be impossible for many people. It helps people carry out basic tasks such as washing, dressing and eating but also, for some...

Read more

The system and the cell

This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation provides a high-level overview of the key health challenges in British prisons today. Good prisoner health is not only a moral issue but it can also deliver wider benefits, including improved public health and reduced reoffending. Drawing on research and insights from academics at The...

Read more

Failure to lead

This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation makes the case for a UK lead screening programme. This briefing examines the scale of lead exposure among children in the UK and finds that current systems are failing to identify and prevent harm. Weak surveillance means the true extent of the problem is unknown,...

Read more

The meat of the matter

This report from UK think tank Green Alliance examines what the trend in lower meat consumption may mean for UK livestock farmers. Diet change, particularly eating a little less meat, is widely recommended for health and sustainability reasons. Yet, government support for such shifts is often framed as a threat to UK livestock farmers. Our...

Read more

Care to negotiate?

This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation discusses how to make a success of the Adult Social Care Negotiating Body. This briefing note sets out recommendations to ensure the new Adult Social Care Negotiating Body can get off the ground quickly, while leaving scope to iterate and refine over time, so that it...

Read more

Learning from the DevoLab #1: How devolution can address health inequalities

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government looks at how devolved powers have been used to address health inequalities. Although health is not a devolved function within England, many regional mayors have identified addressing health inequalities as an important objective and have taken action to improve population health, using a range of...

Read more

Abolished to perfection? Building a better centre for the NHS

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government examines how the abolition of NHS England creates both risks and opportunities. The abolition of NHS England comes with significant opportunities to make the health service’s centre work better within government and in leading the service. It also carries significant risks. The consistent lesson from...

Read more

A good food strategy for the UK

This report from UK think tank Green Alliance explores how to transform the food system through legislation and mandatory reporting. The UK food system sits at the heart of major challenges facing the country: NHS pressures, climate change, food security and the cost of living crisis. It’s responsible for 12% of UK greenhouse gas emissions...

Read more

Hospital of the future: the last word

This report from UK think tank Re:State distills the key themes and recommendations from across all three reports. The past year, Re:State has been working on a landmark programme titled ‘Hospital of the Future’. This was predicated on the idea that the 'upstream' shift to prevention alone will not remediate the existential crisis hospitals are...

Read more

Related Events

14 May 2026

Location: Room 0.18 in the School of Management building (10 East), University of Bath Claverton Down campus, Bath BA2 7AY

Think tank: Institute for Policy Research

Leah Ruppanner: The mental load

This event hosted by UK think tank the Institute for Policy Research explores the unequal distribution of the ‘mental load’ and the policies that could help rebalance it. Sociologist Leah Ruppanner examines the persistent imbalance of the ‘mental load’, the often invisible cognitive and emotional labour required to keep households functioning and thriving. She explains...

21 May 2026

Location: Online

Think tank: Centre for Cities

Uneven cities: The geography of deprivation in urban Britain

This event hosted by UK think tank Centre for Cities discusses how deprivation varies between UK cities and how this has changed over the last 15 years. Britain’s most deprived neighbourhoods are disproportionately urban, but cities are far from uniform. This briefing examines where deprivation concentrates across Britain’s cities, how they differ from each other,...