Community Engagement Approaches to Improve Health: An Analysis of Barriers and Facilitators in UK Practice (Angela Harden)

The presentation was delivered and recorded during the 10th Lifecourse Prevention Summit 2025

In this briefing, Angela Harden presents evidence-based approaches to community engagement for improving health and reducing health inequalities, drawing on national standards work conducted across the UK. She outlines a range of community-centered models, from strengthening community assets to volunteer and peer roles, collaborations, and improved access to resources and presents evidence that all of these approaches can be effective when implemented well.

Harden identifies the key barriers to successful engagement, arguing that capacity building must target not only communities but also the systems and professionals working within them. She proposes four overlapping pillars for effective community engagement: establishing trust, attending to equity and inclusion, realizing community capacity and assets, and sharing power.

Her central message is that meaningful engagement requires long-term investment, commitment from decision makers, and a genuine willingness to hand control to communities and that without these, even well-intentioned initiatives risk becoming tokenistic. This session further explores the subject in depth, highlighting key takeaways, implications for policy and practice, and insights from the expert presenter to help inform future strategies.