Public Health Interventions Review

In 2019, Public Health England (PHE) published “Review of interventions to improve outdoor air quality and public health.” The review informs local and national government on actions they can take.

The report was commissioned by the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) to review the evidence for practical interventions to reduce harm from outdoor air pollution, looking at both health and economic impact.

PHE have based the report on 5 rapid evidence assessments that focused on the following:

• Vehicles and fuels
• Spatial planning
• Industry
• Agriculture
• People’s behaviour

The report evaluated direct links between actions and consequent health and health economic outcomes, focusing on actions available to local authorities and the national actions needed to support them.

The report provides local practitioners and policy-makers with an indication of the broad range of interventions that can be used to address different problems, and which of those interventions may be worth considering further due to their potential health benefits.

It is an important reference point for the Clean Air Strategy in that it has been developed by a separate public body – areas of agreement on the best actions to take (of which there are many) provide strong indications for priorities at a local and national level.