HEN Webinar Recording: September - The role of anchor organisations in addressing health inequalities
Health Equity Network Webinar Recording: September - The role of anchor organisations in addressing health inequalities
In this month's Health Equity Network webinar, we heard from colleagues at Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and the Innovation Unit about the role of anchor organisations in addressing health inequalities.
Oli Clayton (Innovation Unit, HALN) opened with an introduction to anchor organisations — large, locally-rooted institutions such as hospitals, universities and councils that, because of their scale, are major employers, landholders and spenders in their communities. He drew the distinction between "passive" anchors, who simply exist at scale, and "active" anchors, who intentionally use their employment, spending and assets to improve local health and reduce inequalities — from mapping workforce demographics against local populations to redirecting unspent apprenticeship levy funding into local childcare. He pointed to emerging evidence, including from Preston's community wealth building work, showing measurable impact on mental health, wellbeing and child poverty resilience.
Jill Harland and Wayne Daley then brought this to life through Northumbria Healthcare's "Community Promise" — their anchor framework built around five pillars: inequalities, education, employment, economy and environment. Gill outlined how the Trust's staff health and wellbeing strategy, inclusive healthcare framework, and Making Every Contact Count programme are tackling the wider determinants of health, given that around 80% of a person's health sits outside the NHS. Wayne shared concrete results: over 10,000 students engaged through schools and colleges last year, 372 local suppliers now used in procurement, £3.2 million in social value squeezed from a single capital refurbishment, and a new Better Off, Better Health partnership with Citizens Advice helping staff and patients claim unclaimed benefits — particularly significant given the North East sends back more unclaimed benefit money to the Treasury than any other region.
The Q&A explored what counts as a "large" anchor institution (with panellists noting that even a 20-pupil rural school can be a trusted local anchor), whether NHS charities could act as anchors in their own right, and how to withdraw responsibly from anchor work when institutions restructure — with speakers emphasising that trust, continuous listening, and staying embedded in communities (rather than "parachuting in") are what make anchor approaches credible and sustainable.