Britain's 'unhealthiest' High Street revealed

The Royal Society for Public Health has released a fascinating report on Britain's High Streets, naming Grimsby as the unhealthiest and Edinburgh as the healthiest.

The report is jam-packed with economics as it defines the level of 'healthiness' based upon how many organisations exist within a town centre to promote healthy lifestyle choices (e.g. a gym), allow access to health care (e.g. opticians, dentists), encourage social interaction (e.g. a coffee shop) or promote mental well-being (e.g. a museum). Added to this, the index factors-in the number of shops that are empty in each town.

A useful activity for teachers may be to talk about this report and play the RSPH's video. What has caused some towns to be more 'unhealthy' than others? What factors might be ignored by the RSPH that could impact on the relative health of a town or city? What might be positive or negative about the High Street near your students? What policies could be implemented to regenerate town centres? Do we need to regenerate town centres?