Moving public health policy to local authorities may vary workforce skills requirements

The move of public health provision to local authorities has brought about a requirement for a broader portfolio of work for consultants/Directors of Public Health (DPH).  Some councils are adapting well, others less successfully.

Financial pressures, and the reality that smaller local authorities may have only one consultant, mean that there may be pressure for some local authorities to develop different ways of working. This might include public health teams that are combined across neighbouring authorities, with a DPH responsible for a larger geographical area and with more senior consultants working locally.

Such developments would require stronger people skills, e.g. influencing, strategic decision-making, leadership, and with much less emphasis around technical skills. If the consultant role becomes large and skills set too demanding, it may be difficult to recruit at this level. 

The role is likely to demand increasing awareness of other areas, e.g. adult social care, environmental health, leisure, planning etc. This is already happening in some local authorities, which have established joint teams (e.g. public health and another portfolio, typically environmental health or emergency planning).  

Some of the information in this section is provided by stakeholders and expert groups, and does not necessarily represent the views of the CfWI.