Stakeholders gather for workshop considering cross-sector approaches to food security

Over 80 delegates and speakers from Cheshire and Merseyside gathered for a one-day workshop in Liverpool on 27 February to examine the intersections between housing sustainment, access to nutritious food, and the prevalence of diet-related illness, with a view to identifying systemic barriers and opportunities for intervention on food insecurity.

The workshop was coordinated by public health charity, Health Equalities Group (HEG), as part of the Strategic Obesity Project for the sub-region and was delivered in collaboration with NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s ‘Housing and Health Partnership’ and the Cheshire and Merseyside Cancer Alliance (CMCA).

Food insecurity, higher weight and diet-related illnesses can be paradoxically linked as limitations on affordability and access to fresh and healthier food can lead individuals to rely on cheaper, calorie-dense, nutrient-poor options.

Findings from insight work with housing associations carried out by HEG in the second half of 2024 revealed significant activity within the social housing sector to address food insecurity and healthier weight, including strong levels of partnership working with local stakeholders from the public and VCFSE sectors.

Housing associations also showed strong interest in attending a face-to-face workshop to share current practice and take a cross-sector approach to developing long-term solutions to food insecurity and its health implications.

Chaired by Dave Sweeney (Associate Director for Sustainability and Partnerships, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside), the workshop started with overviews of the Strategic Obesity Project (funded by CMCA), launch of a new Housing and Health Partnership for Cheshire and Merseyside, and a review of the current evidence on the association between food insecurity and diet related ill health from Prof Charlotte Hardman (University of Liverpool).

The workshop continued with examples of current practice from housing associations and food partnerships covering: access to affordable food; improving money management and employment skills through food security programmes; and, harnessing lived experience to increase awareness and influence change on food insecurity and poverty.

The morning session concluded with table-based groupwork led by colleagues from Cheshire East Food Alliance on taking a cross-sector approach to increasing uptake of the Healthy Start scheme.

The afternoon session examined how Livv Housing Group has worked in Knowsley to promote healthier weight and positive mental health, whilst delegates also heard about work underway to establish data sharing protocols between Prima Housing Group and NHS partner organisations.

The afternoon session concluded with a presentation from Feeding Liverpool on work with tenants and social housing providers to enhance the food offer at hyper-local level, before a final groupwork exercise using the ‘action scales’ model to identify key actions and policy changes at systems level.

Speaking about the workshop, Ceriann Tunnah, Associate Director for Population Health at NHS Cheshire and Merseyside, said: 

More information on the Cheshire and Merseyside Strategic Obesity Project can be found at: https://www.cm-strategicobesity.org/

More information on the new NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ‘Housing and Health Partnership’ can be found here.