World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Investment for health and well-being (WHO CC)

The World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre on ‘Investment for health and well-being’ (WHO CC) was designated in March 2018 and re-designated for another four years in March 2022. The Centre is the first and only WHO CC in this area of expertise in the world, part of a global network of more than 800 Collaborating Centres in more than 80 countries. This builds on a long-standing partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), working closely with the WHO European Office for Investment for Health and Development in Venice, Italy (the Venice Office), as well as other WHO offices and networks.

The WHO CC has been developing, gathering, utilising and sharing expertise, evidence, practical approaches and innovative tools on how to invest in order to improve health and well-being, reduce health inequities, build stronger communities and resilient systems within and beyond Welsh borders. It informs and promotes sustainable, evidence and people-informed policies; embracing the principles of human rights, equity and diversity and social value. This will help to address the health and well-being needs of current and future generations, driving sustainable development and prosperous lives for all, leaving no one behind.

Our work supports the WHO and other countries to implement the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (the Sustainable Development Goals), the WHO’s Fourteenth General Programme of Work 2025–2028, and the WHO European Programme of work ‘United Action for Better Health’. Nationally, it helps to implement the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act, Prosperity for All: economic action plan, and the plan for health and social care A Healthier Wales, building on the principles of human rights, equity and social value; long-term thinking, prevention, integration, collaboration and participation. The WHO CC work strengthens our European and global collaborations and partnerships; enables more effective cross-sector and multidisciplinary work; and opens various opportunities for knowledge exchange and research, learning from experience and good practice; and developing our people and organisations, delivering to Public Health Wales’ Long-Term Strategy and International Health Strategy.

WHO CC re-designation 2022 – 2026

The new WHO CC 4-year programme of work focuses on providing scientific and policy evidence and expertise to build capacity and implement effective inter-sectoral policies for health and equity across the life course. It also plans to innovate and harness economic and multi-disciplinary tools and approaches to support building an Economy of Wellbeing in Wales, exploring and identifying solutions to the global challenges of widening health gap and socio-economic disparities, COVID-19 response and recovery, and climate change. You can read more on the WHO CC re-designation here.

Renewed terms of reference:

TOR 1: Provide scientific and policy evidence and expertise to WHO supporting direct technical assistance to Member States to build capacity and implement effective inter-sectoral policies addressing the social determinants of health and equity across the life course.

TOR 2: Innovate and harness economic methodologies and multi-disciplinary approaches to support WHO to implement the Economy of Wellbeing initiative.

TOR 3: Provide evidence and support WHO to convene stakeholders’ dialogues and create a common space for exploring and identifying solutions to critical health equity challenges.

Work plan 2022 – 2026

Activities	Description
Activity 1	Provide technical support to WHO informing and accelerating action and solutions across member states to place health equity at the heart of all policies and investments
Activity 2	Provide technical expertise and input to help WHO strengthen the case for investment in wellbeing and health equity and implement an Economy of Wellbeing across Member States
Activity 3	Mobilise evidence, good practices and innovative approaches to help WHO strengthen Health and Equity in All Policies towards achieving sustainable development, leaving no one behind
Activity 4	Support WHO in enhancing understanding and awareness and driving investment for building capacity and resilience to prevent adversity, trauma and injuries across the life course

In the past four years as a WHO collaborating centre, Public Health Wales played a crucial role in establishing and strengthening organisational and Wales’ role as a global influencer and live innovation site for health equity and prosperity for all. Some notable key achievements of Public Health Wales WHO CC include:

Enabled and delivering to an MOU between the Welsh Government and the WHO Regional Office for Europe enhancing Wales’ visibility and impact on the global stage.
Established the first national Welsh Health Equity Status Report initiative (WHESRi), applying an innovative WHO framework and methodology to help reduce the health equity gap in Wales. Learn more about WHESRi here.
Progressed a portfolio of work to strengthen the case for sustainable investment in population health and reducing inequalities, developing innovative tools, guidance, and network.
Progressed a portfolio of work to address adversity and trauma across the life course with a focus on ACEs, violence prevention and building resilience.
Progressed a portfolio of work on Sustainable Development and Health in All Policies, informing policy and practice in Wales and internationally. Learn more about the WHO CC work on sustainable investment and the economy of well-being here.

WHO Collaborating Centres database and portal

Our teams

International health

A focal point for international networking, evidence synthesis, sharing learning and expertise across Wales and the world, strengthening our national and public health role in Europe and globally.

The International Health Team focuses on maximising applied learning from international policy, practice and research to support public health innovation; developing globally responsible people and organisations across the NHS; facilitating international collaboration and investment in Wales; and strengthening Wales’ global health impact through sharing our assets and contributing to global health security and sustainable development.

They work closely with key stakeholders across Wales and the UK, such as the Welsh Government, the Welsh Local Government Association, the Wales for Africa Programme, the Faculty of Public Health, and others; as well as with international partners, such as the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Association of National Public Health Institutes (IANPHI), EuroHealthNet and others.

International Health Team

We focus on maximising learning from international policy, practice and research to support public health innovation, developing synergies and enhancing opportunities towards creating globally responsible, outward looking people and organisations across the NHS.

Visit the international health topic page.

The International Health Coordination Centre (IHCC)

The IHCC is a unique whole-of-Wales programme of work, bringing together all Health Boards and NHS Trusts. It promotes and facilitates international health partnerships, serving as a focal point for information sharing, knowledge exchange, collaboration and networking across the UK, Europe and the world.

Learn more about the IHCC.

The Behavioural Science Unit

The BeSci Unit provides specialist expertise on behavioural science, and champions and enables the increasingly routine application of it, to improve and protect health and wellbeing, and reduce health inequities in Wales. The Unit supports stakeholders in the wider public health system, to deliver a step change in improving health and wellbeing outcomes.

Visit the behavioural science topic page.

Public health policy division

Supporting the development, implementation and evaluation of policies in Wales in order to improve health and reduce inequalities.

We aim to influence and inform policy at a national and local level, working closely with colleagues across Public Health Wales and other stakeholder organisations to achieve our goals. The Division consists of the Policy Team, Wales Health Impact Assessment Support Unit, and the Health and Sustainability Hub.

Polisi

The Polisi team generates, synthesises, and effectively communicates action-orientated, evidence-informed insight. We use this to advocate for policy making that protects and promotes the health and well-being of everyone in Wales, now and for future generations. We also provide essential support and expertise to colleagues across the directorate and Public Health Wales on policy advocacy and responding to policy consultations.

Get in touch with the Polisi team.

Wales Health Impact Assessment Support Unit (WHIASU)

The Wales Health Impact Assessment Support Unit (WHIASU) provide an all-Wales service and provides guidance, training, resources, information and networking in relation to the practice of Health Impact Assessment (HIA).

Visit the Health Impact Assessment topic page.

The Health and Sustainability Hub

The Health and Sustainability Hub supports PHW to embed sustainability and respond to the climate and nature emergencies. We champion the Well-being of Future Generations Act and Environment Act and support PHW strategy priority “Tackling the public health effects of climate change”.

Visit the climate change and sustainability topic page.

Hosted teams

The WHO CC Directorate hosts a number of collaborative programmes, each working together with external partners to secure a happier and healthier Wales. These include the ACE Support Hub, Early Action Together Programme and the Violence Prevention Unit, who have a shared ambition and vision for Wales to become an ACE aware, trauma informed nation.

These programmes use research and development, knowledge and intelligence to take a public health approach to trauma informed policy and practice and to build more resilient communities in Wales.

Adult Childhood Experiences Hub (ACEs)

ACE Hub Wales was founded in 2017 and was set up to support Welsh Society to help create an Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Aware Wales and make Wales a leader in tackling, preventing and mitigating ACEs. We promote the sharing of ideas and learning, and to challenge and change ways of working, so together we can break the cycle of ACEs. ACE Hub Wales is funded by Welsh Government and is hosted by Public Health Wales.

Visit the adult childhood experiences topic page.

Wales Violence Prevention Unit

Established in 2019, the Wales Violence Prevention Unit is a partnership between Public Health Wales, the South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner and South Wales Police. Each organisation contributes funding and expertise to support a whole-system, public health approach to preventing violence, working closely with sectors including health, policing, education, local authorities, governments and the third sector.

Learn more about the Wales Violence Prevention Unit.

Public Health Collaborating Unit

Established in 2017 and based in Bangor University’s School of Health Sciences, the PHCU provides a flexible and efficient resource for rapid assessment, evaluation and policy and service development support to Policy and International Health, the WHO CC and, through the Centre, Public Health Wales and the wider NHS.

Learn more about the Public Health Collaborating Unit.