UK government announces Men's Health Strategy at Movember & DHSC Men's Health Summit
It has been a monumental 24 hours for men’s health in the UK. After nationwide campaigning from Movember and the wider men’s health community, on Thursday 28 November the government announced it will launch a Men’s Health Strategy.
Over a breakfast meeting the next day at 10 Downing Street, Prime Minister, Keir Starmer and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, met with families affected by men’s poor health alongside Movember staff. The families shared their first-hand experiences and discussed the need to engage men more in their healthcare across the UK. The Prime Minister spoke with men and their loved ones affected by a range of men’s health issues, including prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and families affected by male suicide.
The meeting followed the government’s commitment the day before to its first ever Men’s Health Strategy. The announcement came at a jointly run Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Movember Men’s Health Summit, which took place at Arsenal Football Stadium on 28th November, following the publication of Movember’s Real Face of Men’s Health report, earlier in the year.
Public Health Minister, Andrew Gwynne MP, committed to running the summit after Johanna Baxter MP asked, during Health Questions in October, whether he would host a dedicated event with Movember to raise men’s health up the government agenda. The resulting summit, hosted by the Public Health Minister and the Secretary of State for Health Wes Streeting, provided opportunity for men's health organisations to discuss what works for men when it comes to prioritising their health, and what could be implemented to reduce health inequalities moving forward.
At the summit, the Movember team, including CEO Michelle Terry, were joined by Movember ambassadors Ugo Monye, former rugby union player, and Kola Bokinni, star of Ted Lasso and Celebrity Race Across the World, as well as our men’s health partners, MPs and government representatives.
The strategy and the Men’s Health Summit are significant steps towards transforming the face of men’s health. This progress is urgently needed given how many men are dying too young and losing years of healthy life. It’s also a testament to the hard work of Movember supporters who raise awareness of the issues men face all year round.
The strategy will consider how to prevent and tackle the biggest health problems affecting men of all ages, including cardiovascular disease, prostate cancer and testicular cancer, as well as mental health and suicide prevention. It will sit alongside the Women’s Health Strategy, and Movember expects it to outline gender sensitive policies that will help improve men’s health outcomes and prevent avoidable premature deaths. Its launch follows the introduction of similar initiatives in Ireland and Australia.
Michelle Terry, CEO of Movember said:
“Today we celebrate a huge milestone with the UK government committing to a Men’s Health Strategy. This is a significant step forward in transforming the face of men’s health, and urgently needed given how many men are dying too young and losing years of healthy life. Almost 2 in 5 men will die before their 75th birthday and, in England, suicide is the leading cause of death for men aged 20-34 years old. There has long been a recognised need to improve health outcomes for men. Meeting with colleagues from across the sector at today’s Men’s Health Summit provided a great opportunity to bring organisations together to plan for a healthier future.”
“When we improve men’s health, we know that the benefits can ripple through families, communities and societies. This will transform the lives of men, as well as the wives, sisters, mothers, partners, mates, children and neighbours around them. Movember welcomes the government’s leadership on this, and stands ready to work with the Secretary of State and his team to make the Men’s Health Strategy a reality that brings real change to lives up and down the country.”
Ugo Monye, Movember Ambassador, former Rugby Union Player:
“The government's commitment to a Men's Health Strategy is an immense step forward for men across the UK, and I am proud to be a Movember ambassador and to have been able to share my views at today’s Men's Health Summit. We have already waited too long for a commitment to a strategy like this and my hope for the future is that we can create safe spaces for men to talk, where they don’t feel scared of potential repercussions, judgement or stigma. I have seen first-hand the impacts that poor mental health can have on a man at work, for example, and we need a culture across all industries where men feel they can be open and honest about the issues they may be facing.”
Kola Bokinni, Movember Ambassador and star of Ted Lasso and Celebrity Race Across the World said:
“It was a privilege to be part of today’s Summit as a Movember Ambassador, to talk about how we can change the future of men’s health. From a young age, boys are being told they can’t show vulnerability at the risk of being seen to be weak and this has become a systemic problem that needs to be urgently addressed. Any future men’s health strategy will need to harness positive male role models and ensure young men get visibility of these people from a young age. This is an opportunity to reach men during the most important stages of their lives, and we need to use this to help our boys feel they can grow up, thrive and chase their dreams, regardless of their backgrounds.”
Movember - along with our 2.5 million supporters across the UK and our brilliant partners - stand ready to work with government to make this strategy a reality.
What a way to bring the month of Movember to a close.
Photo 1 - left to right: Stef Plowman, Naomi Rittey, Amy O’Connor, Michelle Terry, Chris Rittey, Orville Mullings, Blaine Hunt, Will Adolphy, Josh Morgan, Kay Bansal, Bobby Bansal - outside 10 Downing Street
Photo 2 - left to right: Chris Rittey, Naomi Rittey, Blaine Hunt, Bobby Bansal, Kay Bansal in conversation with Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer and Secretary of State for Health, Wes Streeting
Photo 3 - left to right: Naomi Rittey, Blaine Hunt, Bobby Bansal, Kay Bansal in conversation with Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer and Secretary of State for Health, Wes Streeting