Bexley Council is intensifying its efforts to address health inequalities in the northern part of the borough, with a particular focus on improving cancer screening rates and raising awareness. The initiative has received significant funding, with the North Bexley Local Care Network being allocated £177,153 (33% of the total Health Inequalities Fund) for their two-year project.
Key to these efforts is the recruitment of three new Community Health & Wellbeing Coaches who will work proactively within the most deprived communities in North Bexley, including Slade Green. These coaches will focus on building trust, encouraging behaviour change, and helping residents navigate health and care systems. This approach is informed by lessons learned from previous projects, which highlighted the challenges of limited resources for sustained outreach and the need for culturally sensitive communication.
While breast and bowel cancer screening uptake have seen improvements in North Bexley, a slight decline in cervical screening rates has been noted, prompting a need for renewed focus. Specific metrics reveal that bowel cancer screening uptake among men and women aged 54–74 increased from 56.8% to 62.1% between April 2024 and January 2026. For breast cancer screening, uptake rose from 59.8% to 68.8% during the same period, representing improvements of 5.3 and 9.0 percentage points, respectively.
The council is also working to address misconceptions and fears surrounding cancer and screening procedures. This includes overcoming cultural and language barriers, which have been identified as critical challenges. Lessons learned from previous initiatives highlight the need for culturally sensitive messaging, the use of trusted community leaders, and the provision of educational materials and services in local languages to foster trust and improve comprehension. The Bexley Community Cancer Champions
initiative, for example, aims to leverage community members to disseminate accurate information.
Councillor Lisa Moore raised concerns about the sustainability of outreach efforts given initial resource limitations, but was assured that the Health Inequalities Fund is recurrent and the new wellbeing coaches represent a more advanced, sustainable model. Councillor Howard Jackson sought further detail on lessons learned regarding cultural and language barriers, and the challenges of limited resources for sustained outreach.
The success of the Community Health & Wellbeing Coaches will be evaluated based on their proactive, place-based working within defined neighbourhoods of approximately 150–200 households, aiming to identify, address, and prevent health inequalities. National evaluations suggest such roles can improve screening and immunisation uptake, reduce pressure on primary care, and contribute to better self-management of long-term conditions, though specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the Bexley coaches are not yet detailed.
Further details on the council's approach and performance can be found in the Public reports pack for the Adult Social Care Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on 18th March 2026, specifically within Item 07: Tackling Health Inequalities in North Bexley. Public reports pack 18th-Mar-2026 19.30 Adult Social Care Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee
