What chance have you got of living a healthy life if your neighbourhood actively works against you? If it isn't safe to go out jogging at night, or your community lacks places to buy nutritious food, or venues for activities whether sporting or social?
The place-based approach to health is founded on evidence that shows communities are healthier when the physical, social and economic environment supports health and wellbeing. That means not just good housing, but transport links, opportunities for work, accessible green spaces. It means not accepting poor local services or reduced standards in deprived areas. And it is based on the principle that the people who know the strengths and problems of an area best are those that live there.
And Scotland is a world leader in this field. The Place Standard tool, which is used as a measure across the UK and Europe and further afield was developed by NHS Scotland, Architecture & Design Scotland and the Scottish Government. It encourages people to walk around the place they stay, talk to each other and discuss what kind of change is needed, why and how to make it happen. It insists planners must pay more than just lip service to consulting with communities.
In recognition of this, Edinburgh has just hosted the WHO European Healthy Cities Masterclass, bringing together academics, technical experts and representatives of nearly 30 European cities to discuss the opportunities the approach brings.
The need for this is made more pressing by urbanising trends across the world, as populations increasingly move from being predominantly rural to city-based.
Here at home the most urgent consideration is how to incorporate such lofty ideals at the same time as the Scottish Government is planning the biggest acceleration of house-building for decades.
Will the 50,000 new homes ministers plan be located within "healthy" communities, with access to parks, work, transport and leisure activities?
Shona Robison, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, who spoke at the masterclass event said they should: “In order to address the inequalities in health across our communities, we need to tackle the root causes," she said. "New communities also have to provide economic and social opportunities for their residents – and they have to meet our aspirations for greener lifestyles. In any new development the aim should be to address these many important issues at the same time.”
Monika Kosinska, of the WHO European Healthy Cities Network, describes the "groundbreaking" Place Standard Tool as "Scotland's gift to the 1300 cities of the WHO European Healthy Cities Network".
Being a world leader in planning theory is all very well. The crucial test will be putting it into action in our own backyards, and the environments that surround them.
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