Wandsworth (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Wandsworth Council has launched a new five-year strategy to improve sexual and reproductive health for residents of all age groups across the borough.
In addition to celebrating recent achievements, such as a 41.9% decrease in new HIV diagnoses, improved access to contraception, and a decline in adolescent pregnancy rates in Wandsworth, this plan builds on actual community needs. Concerning topics like the growing STI rates in London and the lack of knowledge among youth are also covered.
The plan prioritizes access and prevention, with significant advancements such as:
- Free contraception in local pharmacies
- A new sexual and reproductive health training module for professionals
- The NSPCC’s “Talk PANTS” campaign for children
- Tailored sexual health campaigns for older adults
Graeme Henderson, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Community Safety, said:
“This is about giving our residents the tools, knowledge and services they need to take control of their sexual and reproductive health. Everyone deserves access to support, whatever their age or background as part of our commitment to a fairer and more compassionate Borough.”
This approach is the outcome of community participation, and Wandsworth is a listening council.
It was created with a great deal of community and stakeholder involvement.
This includes conducting staff and resident surveys, conducting seminars with persons, and collaborating closely with strategic partners such as drug service partners, pharmacy providers, disability organizations, mental health providers, VCS forums, and others.
In addition, a six-week official public consultation will be conducted.
Why does the strategy adopt the WHO life course framework for Wandsworth?
The life course approach acknowledges the multifaceted influence of biological, psychosocial, environmental, and behavioural factors on health and wellbeing throughout the life course, which begins with the early developmental period and spans across the adult and into the older years.
This approach draws attention to sensitive and critical periods when interventions have the greatest impact on a person’s health and wellbeing, including but not limited to childhood, adolescence, reproductive years, and older age, so that interventions can occur in time and be appropriate to the circumstances.
This approach explicitly accounts for health inequalities as it acknowledges that cumulative exposures and social determinants impact health trajectories, and the thinking we can do together to ameliorate such inequities particularly in the context of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).