About SHINE

The Supporting Healthy Inclusive Neighbourhood Environments Health Integration Team (SHINE HIT) aims to turn Bristol into a healthier city, with built environments that help people to be more healthy. SHINE will achieve this by integrating health, well-being and social inclusion with urban development, transport and planning, to reduce health risks and promote healthier lifestyles.

The team includes experts from Bristol’s universities, the city council and NHS acute and mental health trusts and local communities. The leadership team has been expanded to broaden SHINE’s expertise base. See who’s involved below for more information.

SHINE uses innovative research and sound science to influence future planning and transport policy, and investment decisions, producing positive outcomes that improve people’s health and promote social inclusion.

Aims and objectives

The overall aim of the SHINE HIT is to use sound science, community voices and innovation to establish Bristol as a healthy city, reduce health inequities, and closely align city development with health, well-being, social inclusion and green city aspirations.

This HIT does not target specific diseases and conditions, but aims to promote healthier neighbourhoods. In doing so the overall aim is to enable people to ‘stay well’ for as long as possible, and to enable patients to recover more quickly, in their communities and neighbourhoods.

Who’s involved

SHINE HIT’s directors are Dr Suzanne Audrey, Honorary Senior Public Health Research Fellow at the School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol (UoB), Dr Adrian Davis, Senior Fellow in Translational Research & Behaviour Change at UWE Bristol and Associate Editor of Transport & Health and Sally Hogg, Public Health Consultant, Bristol City Council.

The HIT’s leadership team includes representatives from from Transport, Neighbourhoods, Town Planning, and Housing in Bristol City Council, as well as from physical activity researchers from the University of Bristol, a green space specialist, and a Neighbourhood Partnership representative.

See the full list of who’s involved.

How the public is involved

By its nature, transport and spatial planning in neighbourhoods must involve the community. SHINE will be working with communities to help shape its research agenda and facilitate changes to the neighbourhood environment. For example, Traffic Choices has been developed to assist communities in selecting evidence based and cost effective traffic management schemes in order to improve neighbourhood road safety.

Projects and activities

Building on Bristol’s ‘joined up’ approach to healthier urban development, the SHINE team will collate and improve the collection of baseline data, promote links between key stakeholders and local communities, develop evidence-based interventions, and use these findings to promote good practice.

For example, working with the National Institute for Health Research Applied Research Collaboration West (NIHR ARC West), the HIT is reviewing evidence of the link between improvements to the built environment and public health.

Another area of interest is to support and promote safe environments for outdoor play and active travel. This has included a review of the links between academic attainment and children’s physical activity and how this can deliver benefits across areas of public policy.

Find out more about SHINE’s projects and activities.

Contacts

To find out more, please contact:

  • Adrian Davis, Senior Fellow in Translational Research & Behaviour Change, [email protected] 0117 922 2940
  • Suzanne Audrey, Honorary Senior Fellow: [email protected] or 0117 928 7273

SHINE at the HIT conference

The SHINE HIT presented this poster (PDF) at the 2018 Bristol Health Partners Health Integration Team conference.

View the 2015 video