A three-year project has been drawn up to help people in Sutton live longer and healthier lives.

Despite having a life expectancy above the national average it varies across the borough by about eight years between the poorer and wealthier wards.

Now the council’s health and wellbeing strategy for 2013-16 has committed to tackling this variation along with other problems.

The three-year plan has four priorities including improving health and wellbeing, mental health, health of those with illnesses and disabilities and engaging with people in the community.

They will focus on factors such as smoking, obesity, transport and housing as well as introducing schemes to promote exercise and help people to quite smoking.

They hope to improve the situation for patients suffering Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and to help landlords understand the needs of people with mental health problems.

They are also going to develop council-wide plans to mitigate food and fuel poverty as week as looking at housing and social care provision.

Your Local Guardian:

Councillor Ruth Dombey, leader of Sutton Council and chair of the borough’s health and wellbeing board, said: “Everyone has the right to good health.

"However across Sutton there are differences in health, wellbeing and life expectancy and these can be avoided.

“We know that to reduce these inequalities we need to focus on all of the factors that influence good health including education, housing, employment and our local environment.

“It’s about giving people choices and helping them make decisions that work best for them and will enable them to live healthy long lives.”

Your Local Guardian:

Dr Ellis Friedman, director of public health in Sutton, said: “We have set challenging targets for the next three years and I look forward to working closely with medical professionals, council staff and, of course, residents to achieve them.”

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