How Community Wealth Building can help prevent poverty and reduce health inequalities

As part of Challenge Poverty Week, Dr Rachel McAdams, Service Manager within Public Health Scotland's Fairer Healthier Economies team, explains how Community Wealth Building can help tackle poverty and reduce health inequalities, and how the new anchors progression framework supports organisations to turn ambition into action.

This Challenge Poverty Week, I want to highlight the opportunity that Community Wealth Building presents to reduce poverty and improve health in Scotland. This is prevention in action, which sits at the heart of Public Service Reform.

Everyone in Scotland should have the resources and opportunities they need to live a healthy life. Yet poverty continues to affect too many people, limiting access to the building blocks of health such as good housing, nutritious food and secure employment. Poverty is preventable. Action to reduce it can improve population health and reduce health inequalities.

The Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Act 2026 aims to change this by strengthening local economies and reducing inequalities.

What is Community Wealth Building (CWB)

CWB is a practical route for embedding prevention within local economies, using the economic power of the public sector. It is an economic development approach organised around five interconnected pillars. Organisations are asked to use everyday decisions on spending, workforce, land and property ownership, and finance differently, to reduce social and economic inequalities and support more resilient local economies.

Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Act 2026

The Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Act places new duties on public bodies to adopt this approach and work with relevant partners to develop plans that strengthen local economies and reduce inequalities. Specified bodies, such as Creative Scotland, The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Scottish Water and Special Health Boards must also have due regard to the guidance and embed CWB approaches.

A big opportunity for change

Almost one in four people in Scotland are employed in the public sector, meaning fair work practices can have a significant impact on population health. The public sector spends around £17 billion on goods and services each year. Using that economic influence differently can help create good jobs, support local organisations and keep more wealth circulating within communities.

Putting this into practice

At Public Health Scotland, we have been supporting public bodies, including NHS Boards, to embed CWB approaches for several years. We have an extensive suite of resources aimed at building the capacity of public bodies.

A recent resource we have launched is our new anchors progression framework. As anchor institutions, public bodies have an important role to play in embedding CWB approaches. Anchor institutions are large organisations with a strong local presence and a long-term stake in the communities they serve.

The anchors progression framework is a practical tool that helps organisations assess their current approach to CWB, identify opportunities for improvement and strengthen their local impact.

The framework focuses on areas where anchor institutions can influence:

• Being a fair and inclusive employer e.g. support fair work and inclusive recruitment, especially for people who face barriers to employment
•  Using procurement and spend to create social value e.g. buy more goods and services from local, ethical and sustainable suppliers
• Making better use of land, buildings and assets e.g. use buildings, green spaces and assets in ways that support community needs

Explore the anchors progression framework, resources and case studies to learn how your organisation can strengthen its role as an anchor institution, deliver CWB approaches and support efforts to prevent poverty & reduce inequalities.
You can also contact us directly at PHS for support in applying the framework within your organisation – phs.anchors@phs.scot