Health Inequalities

What are health inequalities?

Health inequalities are avoidable and unfair differences in health between groups of people.

They aren’t random. They’re shaped by circumstances often beyond an individual’s control, such as income, education, housing, and access to services.

These inequalities show up in:

• Health outcomes, ike life expectancy and illness rates.

• Access to care, such as availability of treatments.

• Quality of care, including patient experience and satisfaction.

• Lifestyle risks, like smoking, diet, or exercise levels.

• Wider influences,​​​​​​​ such as jobs, housing, and local environment.

People experience these differences due to overlapping factors, including socio-economic status, geography, protected characteristics (like sex, ethnicity, or disability), and social exclusion (such as homelessness).

Across Lincolnshire, these factors create significant gaps in health between areas and population groups.

Tackling health inequalities effectively

To truly reduce health inequalities, we must recognise their complex causes. Simple, one-off fixes often fail, or even make things worse.

For example, improving diets isn’t just about changing habits; it also means making healthy food affordable, regulating marketing, and ensuring fair access to healthcare.

Lasting change requires a comprehensive, joined-up approach. Evidence (1) shows that when action is coordinated, sustained, and focused on the many overlapping factors - like healthcare quality, education, housing, and income - real progress happens.

This work goes beyond the health system. It demands strong partnerships across services, sectors, and communities, working together at local, regional, and national levels to create a fairer, healthier future for everyone.

How we're responding in Lincolnshire

In Lincolnshire, the Health Inequalities team is taking a comprehensive, joined-up approach.

NHS Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board has a team of dedicated professionals who work with the health and social care providers to reduce health inequalities across Lincolnshire. 

They use the NHS England approach Core20PLUS5 for adults and for Core20PLUS5 children and young people.

They work closely with Public Health (Lincolnshire County Council)  to reduce the gap between the healthiest and the least healthy populations within Lincolnshire.

You can find out more about what the Health Inequalities are doing by reading their Statement of Information on Health Inequalities Full version or Summary.