The Health and Wellbeing Board of Stockport Council met on Thursday 8 October 2026 to discuss several key public health issues. The meeting focused on the findings of three Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNAs) concerning gambling harm, learning disabilities, and an overall review of JSNA activity. The Board also reviewed the forward plan for future meetings.

Gambling Harm Needs Assessment

The Board considered a report detailing the findings of a JSNA on gambling harm in Stockport. The assessment revealed that gambling harms have far-reaching consequences, affecting an estimated 29,448 residents through impacts on individuals, families, and communities, with an estimated financial cost of £7.92 million annually. While access to specialist NHS treatment has increased sevenfold between 2020 and 2025, there remain significant gaps in treatment access, with an estimated 7,644 individuals in need of treatment. The report highlighted that gambling premises are disproportionately located in the most deprived areas of Stockport, and online gambling presents a significant challenge for local prevention efforts.

The Board was asked to approve the analysis for publication and to endorse nine recommendations. These recommendations include embedding lived experience in prevention approaches, ensuring the emerging Stockport local plan addresses gambling-related harm, implementing standardised screening and training for gambling harms, establishing a Stockport gambling harms steering group, improving monitoring of gambling-related suicides, implementing and evaluating local prevention interventions, maintaining a public health approach independent of industry interests, adopting counter-marketing strategies, and directly engaging communities to understand their needs. The Board noted these recommendations.

Learning Disability Needs Assessment

The Board also reviewed a JSNA focusing on learning disabilities in Stockport. The assessment indicated that while GP-registered prevalence of learning disability is 0.6%, the estimated total number of adults with a learning disability in Stockport is around 5,605, with 1,160 having moderate or severe learning disabilities. The report highlighted significant health inequalities, including a life expectancy gap of approximately 20 years for men and 23 years for women, and that 39% of deaths are from preventable causes. Stockport performs well in delivering annual health checks, with an 88% uptake rate, but there are concerns about under-identification, particularly for those with milder learning disabilities.

The JSNA identified that learning disability support is the leading reason for Adult Social Care involvement among young adults, with a projected 45% increase in weekly spend over the next five years. Employment remains a significant inequality, with only 5.1% of adults with learning disabilities known to social care being in paid employment. The report also noted that the learning disability population is concentrated in more deprived areas, reinforcing the link between learning disability and socioeconomic disadvantage.

The Board was asked to approve the analysis for publication and to endorse ten recommendations. These include improving the identification of people with learning disabilities across the system, strengthening multi-agency transition planning and carer support, continuing to improve annual health checks, expanding reasonable adjustments across all services, improving screening and vaccination uptake, developing a proactive prevention approach for obesity and other health behaviours, building employment pathways, planning for future housing demand, improving opportunities for social connection and community participation, and strengthening local learning disability intelligence through better data quality and co-production. The Board noted these recommendations.

Stockport JSNA Review and Plan

The Board received an overview of JSNA activity for the 12 months to September 2026 and the proposed work plan for the coming year. The review highlighted that while Stockport performs well overall, inequalities become visible upon closer examination. Key findings from the past year included a widening life expectancy gap between the most and least deprived areas, with men in the most deprived quintile expected to live 10.1 years less than those in the least deprived quintile. The JSNA also noted that Stockport is a flourishing borough but with pockets of significant deprivation, including the most deprived small area in Greater Manchester. The review of young people's needs identified inequalities in SEND provision and income deprivation, with young people highlighting the need for safe spaces, more activities, and better mental health support.

For the upcoming year (2026/27), the proposed JSNA work plan includes completing a JSNA on long-term conditions, refreshing the SEND and neurodivergence JSNA, creating a JSNA on healthy weight and obesity prevention, supporting the development of Neighbourhood Health and Live Well programmes, and updating the overall Health of the Borough assessment. The Board was asked to consider and comment on these proposals and approve the priorities for the JSNA work programme. The Board approved these priorities.

Forward Plan for Health & Wellbeing Board

The Board reviewed the forward plan for future meetings. It was noted that an update on palliative care funding would be moved from October 2026 to January 2027. The Board also discussed the importance of ensuring representation from partner organisations at future meetings. The next meeting was scheduled for 13 January 2027 at 2:00 PM in the Old Town Hall. The Board expressed a desire for the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust to attend future meetings, as they are a vital part of health and wellbeing across the borough.