About the lecture

In this lecture, we think about the evidence around health inequalities in the United Kingdom, focusing in particular on: (i) social class and the notion of the “social gradient” in health – that health outcomes decline in relation to class position – considering several examples, including childhood obesity and COVID-19 mortality rates; (ii) geographical inequalities in life expectancy and COVID-19 mortalities at neighbourhood and regional levels; (iii) health inequalities between ethnic groups; (iv) evidence that inequalities along these lines are worsening rather than improving.

About the lecturer

Professor Clare Bambra is Professor of Public Health at Newcastle University. She is a renowned expert in the field of health inequalities, and she has recently undertaken extensive research into the unequal impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, including leading SAGE’s independent report into this. Her recent publications include The Unequal Pandemic: COVID-19 and Health Inequalities (2021, co-author), Health in Hard Times: Austerity and Health Inequalities (2019, editor), and Health Divides: Where You Live Can Kill You (2016).