Chief Medical Officer Explores Rural Health Challenges In Devon

England’s Chief Medical Officer, Sir Chris Whitty, has visited Devon as part of a wider fact-finding tour examining the health challenges facing people living in rural towns and communities.

The visit will help inform Sir Chris’s annual report to Government later this year, which is expected to focus on health and wellbeing in rural and small-town England.

During his visit to Devon County Council, Sir Chris met with Public Health Devon, councillors, Trading Standards, Communities teams and partners including Active Devon to discuss the realities of delivering health and wellbeing services across a large rural county.

Among the key issues raised were affordable housing pressures, homelessness, rural deprivation, food insecurity and fuel poverty. Discussions also highlighted the difficulties many rural residents face in accessing healthcare, education, employment opportunities and public services due to poor transport links and patchy digital connectivity.

Young people’s experiences were also shared through findings from a recent Devon Youth Council survey, which highlighted concerns around limited public transport and unreliable broadband access in rural communities.

Devon’s ageing population was identified as another major challenge, with the county supporting one of the highest proportions of older residents in England and facing growing pressures on health and adult social care services.

As part of the visit, Sir Chris travelled to Buckfastleigh, a rural town identified as experiencing significant rural deprivation. There he met local councillors, community representatives and healthcare professionals, including Pam Barrett from Better Places, which works to tackle social, health and economic inequalities in small rural towns.

Professor Chris Whitty said the visit had highlighted both the challenges and the work being done locally to support communities:

Improving population health across geographically dispersed rural and coastal communities is difficult, with challenges for many residents accessing physical or digital services. Despite these challenges, the local team is doing fantastic work to support the health of their communities.

The visit reflects growing national recognition of the barriers many rural communities face in accessing the “building blocks” of good health, including transport, housing, connectivity and local services, issues that are increasingly being raised by rural organisations and local authorities across England.