COUNCIL chiefs at Copeland have agreed to adopt a blueprint designed to improve health across the county.

The document seeks to promote closer working relationship between county and district councils and organisations such as the NHS.

Due to be signed off in the next couple of weeks, Copeland council is the final district council to adopt the strategy due to the way its meetings have fallen.

Speaking at the last meeting of the executive of this electoral term, Coun Mark Holliday, portfolio holder for Communities, praised the plans as “wide-ranging” and “cohesive.”

He said: “This strategy goes from accessing the arts right through to social equality. I fully support this and it’s starting to become a proper targeted strategic approach.”

The meeting heard that Copeland council already works closely with other organisations involved with health and had set up and led the Copeland Health and Wellbeing Forum six years ago.

Coun Holliday also stressed that the county’s strategy tallied with the work Copeland council was already doing in terms of tackling issues including social isolation and domestic abuse and improving community facilities such as the Beacon.

The county’s Health and Wellbeing Board has developed the strategy to deal with issues that affect people’s lives from immunisations to cutting carbon emissions.

Copeland council received the final draft of the Cumbria Joint Public Health Strategy at a meeting yesterday (April 16) from Colin Cox, Cumbria County Council’s director of public health,

The intention now is that there is develop action plans including a county-focussed approach and another involving district councils and parish councils.

The creation of the strategy, which follows public consultation, is a statutory requirement placed on the Health and Wellbeing board which is made up of representatives from county and borough councils, officers and health partners.