Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust has been formally recognised for its leadership in addressing health inequalities after achieving Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Organisation Accreditation – a cornerstone of the city’s Marmot initiative.
The accolade reflects the Trust’s commitment to improving outcomes for children, young people, and families, while working collaboratively across health, education, and the voluntary sector to address the wider determinants of health.
Recognition within Liverpool’s Marmot City Vision
The accreditation forms part of Liverpool’s Marmot City approach, led by the Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Partnership. The city-wide programme brings together organisations to tackle inequalities and improve wellbeing through coordinated, cross-sector action.
For Alder Hey, the achievement underlines a sustained focus on prevention, early intervention, and community-based support – areas the awarding panel highlighted as key strengths. The Trust demonstrated clear alignment with all eight Marmot Principles, alongside strong evidence of impact across Liverpool’s communities.
The recognition also extended to Alder Hey Children’s Charity, which achieved its own accreditation, reinforcing the collective effort behind the Trust’s approach.
John Grinnell, Chief Executive of Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“Being recognised as a Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Organisation reflects the passion and commitment of colleagues and partners across Alder Hey who work every day to improve the lives of children, young people, and families.
“Through our Vision 2030 strategy, we are committed to helping create a healthier, happier and fairer future, and we know this can only be achieved by working together with partners across our communities to tackle health inequalities and provide the best possible support for children and young people.”
A City-Wide Effort to Improve Outcomes
The announcement was made at the Fairer, Healthier Liverpool Celebration Event held at The Florrie, marking one year since Liverpool became a Marmot City. The event brought together organisations from across public, voluntary, community, and faith sectors to celebrate progress and reaffirm a shared commitment to improving health outcomes.
Liverpool’s Marmot framework focuses on the “building blocks” of health – such as education, employment, housing, and community resilience – recognising that these factors play a critical role in shaping long-term wellbeing.
What This Means for the Wider NHS
For NHS leaders and system partners, Alder Hey’s accreditation provides a strong example of how integrated, place-based approaches can drive meaningful change. The Trust’s work demonstrates that tackling inequalities requires:
- Strong cross-sector collaboration
- A focus on prevention and early support
- Community engagement embedded in service design
- Alignment with broader system strategies like Marmot
As more systems adopt population health management approaches, the Marmot model continues to gain traction as a blueprint for reducing inequalities at scale.
Image credit: iStock
