Inequalities in health

A baby born in a deprived area of the UK today can expect to live years fewer than one born a few miles away in an affluent suburb—and that gap has barely budged since 1980. This programme tackles a stubborn failure: despite decades of political attention, no one is certain what *causes* health inequalities or which interventions actually close the gap. The researchers will do three things: describe the precise shape of these inequalities, identify the root causes (not just correlations), and rigorously test what works to reduce them—in whole populations, in workplaces, and across different countries. If successful, the work could shift public health policy from guesswork to evidence. Instead of funding programmes that merely sound good, governments and employers could invest in interventions proven to narrow the life-expectancy gap. The impact would be felt in everyday decisions—where to site a new GP surgery, how to design a workplace health scheme, which tax or benefit changes most improve the health of the poorest. The research is applied by design: it aims directly at a practical, measurable outcome, not at fundamental science.