Healthy communities and healthy lungs
Executive summary
The South West London (SWL) 2025 spring engagement programme in Wandsworth focused on understanding residents’ access to NHS services, healthy lifestyle behaviours, and views on respiratory health (“healthy lungs”), particularly among Core20 and underserved communities.
Respiratory health remains a significant concern in Wandsworth. The borough experiences high emergency admissions for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and lower respiratory tract infections in children, despite some conditions being below regional and national prevalence averages. Smoking continues to be a leading cause of death and illness, with young people in Wandsworth more than twice as likely to smoke at age 15 compared with their peers across London. Air pollution, particularly around main roads and town centres, further affects lung health, contributing to hospital admissions and early deaths.
11 local voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations were funded to deliver 32 activities and to have in-depth conversations with just over 350 people from a range of ethnicities, socio-economic and health backgrounds.
Key borough wide findings:
- Accessing health and care services is often difficult due to long waits, confusing systems, and slow referrals.
- Digital-first systems create barriers for people with limited English, literacy, or confidence in technology.
- People value trusted, local support and culturally sensitive spaces to navigate care and maintain wellbeing.
- Everyday environments including green spaces, safe areas, and simple activities, significantly impact people’s mental health.
Key healthy lungs findings:
- People delay seeking medical help due to uncertainty about symptom severity and low confidence in recognising warning signs.
- Social networks strongly influence decisions to seek care sometimes causing delays.
- Poor air quality and environmental pollution impact lung health, particularly for vulnerable groups.
- Awareness of vaping risks among young people is low and people want stronger regulations.
Next steps
The insight in this report is presented by ward to support a neighbourhood approach.
The findings from this report are being shared with our local and health partners in Wandsworth and across South West London