HEALTHCARE HealthCare Name of the Student Name of the University Author Note

Running head: HEALTHCARE
HealthCare
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Introduction
According to the Public Health England (2019), the Government of UK aims towards
saving live while promoting well-being by creating an environment where the families,
individuals and the communities feel informed, healthier, empowered and happier. The main
approach taken by the government of UK is to promote public health and wellbeing by
implementing robust, effective healthcare programs in order to address the main social
factors that affect the health of the people. The social factors, which affect health and well-
being is guided by the socio-economic determinants of health. Effective control of the social
and economic factors helps to overcome the health inequalities and thereby helping to
promote comprehensive health and well-being (Public Health England 2019). The following
essay aims to analyse the socio-economic and the socio-cultural determinants of health
affecting the lifestyle of the population residing in Penhill & Upper Stratton located in the
electoral division of the North Swindon. The essay will mainly focus on two most prevalent
health-concerns in the Penhill & Upper Stratton Ward, namely: childhood obesity and self
harm. Analysis of the disease in relation to the socio-cultural and socio-economic
determinants will be followed by a detailed comparison with the health and the policy
initiatives of the larger part of England and Swindon Borough. The essay will also analyse
the impact of the diseases condition on the health and life of the individuals. At the end, essay
will provide further recommendation in order to overcome the situations. The
recommendation will be based on framing interventions that can bring behavioural change
and attitude towards healthy living.
Identification of local community
Penhill & Upper Stratton Ward is located in the south western part of England and is
enrolled under the Swindon Borough Council. It is regarded as one of the deprived areas of

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the Swindon Borough. As per the population statistics, the population density is 3,396 per
kilometre square. This comprises of 12,351 people as per the 2011 Census (Swindon’s Joint
Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) (2016). Among this population, 51.9% are females and
48.1% is males. The average life expectancy is 65 to 70 years and this constitutes 18.6% of
the population. Whereas, 18 to 64 years consists of 56.9% of the population and 24.5% of the
population consists of the age group of 0 to 17 years. The life expectancy of males is 14.1
years less and that of females is 12.1 years in comparison to other areas located under the
Swindon Borough Council (Swindon’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) (2016). The
majority of the population are from the UK origin (93.9%). The main ethnic group which
resides in this ward include Hispanic white (83.5%). Other ethnic groups include Asian and
Black. Christianity (59.3%) is the main religion in this ward and the second most significant
religion is Sikh (38.8%). Other religions include Muslims, Hindu and Buddhist. In relation to
the open space data as highlighted by Swindon Borough Council (2014), Penhill & Upper
Stratton ward has no distinct character to open-space within the ward. A significant amount
of the general recreation areas are provided towards the edge of the ward which results in the
lack of adequate localised space at the centre of the ward. The spaces located within the ward
mainly consist of back land and long strips in front of the housing estates.
Key issues affecting that area (socio-economic determinant)
Childhood obesity
The key health issues of this area include childhood obesity and self-harm. According
to the Swindon’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) (2018), the childhood obesity
report of 2017 and 2018 highlighted that majority of the children between the age group of 4
to 5 years and 10 to 11 years are over-weight. Every one out of the 10 children in the Penhill
& Upper Stratton is over-weight. Increase in the body weight or developing obesity hampers

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a person’s ability to lead a healthy life. Moreover, childhood obesity also increases the risk of
numerous non-communicable chronic diseases like stroke, type 2 diabetes mellitus, dementia
and other cardio-vascular diseases during the later part of life (Bastien et al. 2014). JSNA
healthy weight assessment report (2018) stated that obesity is the major public health risk
factor. This risk factor amounts cost of £31million annually to Swindon Borough. Increase in
the health care cost lead to an increase in the social service costs and thereby casting a
negative impact on the local economy (JSNA 2018). The main reason which leads to an
increase in the trends of the childhood obesity is lack of proper education and health-related
awareness among the people of the Penhill & Upper Stratton ward. According to Swindon
Borough Council (2013), the people residing in the Penhill & Upper Stratton ward mainly
leads a sedentary life. The majority of the time is wasted in watching television and reduced
rate of physical activity. Sahoo et al. (2015) are of the opinion sedentary life style along with
decrease physical activity reduces the overall BMR (basal metabolic rate of the body) leading
to increase in the tendency to gain weight. Swindon Borough Council (2013) also stated that
majority of the households or the families residing in Penhill & Upper Stratton Ward suffer
from lack of employment, one of the prime socio-economic determinants of health.
According to Swindon Inequalities Research Report (2016), 18.7% of the population in
Penhill & Upper Stratton Ward resides below the poverty line and are severely deprived in
the “education, skills and training domain”. In order to cope up with the depression of
financial crisis or in order to aid their sedentary life, the adults get addicted towards smoking
and drinking. This habit is vertically transmitted to their wards as well and this can be cited as
a reason behind the high prevalence of obesity among the children between the age group of
15 to 18 years. The diet is another significant factor behind the increase in the trend of
obesity among the children (Sahoo et al. 2015). Swindon Borough Council (2013) stated that
the staple diet of the UK is changing drastically both in the domain of amount and the type of