From government policies to the air we breathe, the high streets we shop on, the food on our plates, and the places we live and work - our health is shaped by the world around us.
Featuring expert guests from a breadth of sectors, fields and industries, Spread the Health explores how our environment influences health in both obvious and unexpected ways.
We tackle the big questions about the nation's health and, crucially, examine how to overcome the barriers to building a healthier future for all.
Spread the Health is a podcast from the Royal Society for Public Health, the world’s oldest public health agency.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
Social care has quickly come to dominate the political agenda with Prime Minister Andy Burnham's announced plans for a National Care Service. Polling in the aftermath of the announcement shows that the public is on side – but how does the idea stack up against the realities of the social care sector?
In the week before the announcement, William spoke with Vic Rayner OBE, Chief Executive Officer of the National Care Forum. The conversation covers aging, global approaches, technology and the new government's approach to care.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
3 Sept 2026
How to be a public health leader
This month on Spread The Health, we're trying something a bit different. William has passed the host's chair to Tracy Daszkiewicz, President of the Faculty of Public Health, to interview RSPH Chair Nick Harding in a fascinating conversation about public health leadership.
Alongside that, William chats with RSPH Head of External Affairs Helen Thompson about our upcoming work in the Movement, Sport and Leisure sectors.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Recorded, produced and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
4 Aug 2026
The political decisions driving health
This month on Spread the Health, William speaks to public health physician, epidemiologist and former RSPH chair Jonathan Pearson-Stuttard. Jonathan covers a broad spectrum of public health topics including population health, alcohol, politics and why we should be talking about the drivers of health rather than the determinants.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
23 Jun 2026
Why ignoring health inequality is "economically illiterate"
This month on Spread the Health, William speaks to Professor Bola Owolabi CBE, Chief Inspector at the Care Quality Commission, RSPH Vice President and NHS GP.
Bola takes us on a deep dive into the issues facing the country around health inequalities: why healthy choices are a function of privilege, the economic and moral case for equalising health outcomes, and our health trajectory looking towards 2040.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
28 May 2026
Jonathan Van-Tam on his career, vaccines and pandemics
This month on Spread the Health, William sits down with Jonathan Van-Tam, former Deputy Chief Medical Officer and one of the most respected names in British public health. JVT talks about his career from academia through to his prominent role in the COVID-19 pandemic response, as well as all things vaccines and the importance of communicating health topics clearly with the public.
This podcast discusses The Royal Society for Public Health’s new Commission on Access to Vaccines. This is a collaborative working project between the RSPH and Pfizer Ltd, which is funded by Pfizer and is non promotional. Pfizer will review associated materials for medical accuracy and to ensure regulatory compliance.
If you would like to share your experience with access to vaccinations, answer our call for evidence (https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=QPwk3oRajE6VEJZJL6yckydyQLJhR15Luz0Mni4Jz9xUOVk5NVNFQ0NDRVpFQlo2RFYxOTU4RDk1Vi4u) to have your voice heard.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
28 Apr 2026
Moving women's health up the agenda
This month on Spread the Health, William speaks to presenter and health expert Shakira Akabusi about women's health. They cover the challenges women face around maternity and menopause, the online health misinformation that targets women and how to spot it, as well as the new women's health strategy.
Shakira is a presenter, speaker, writer, entrepreneur and leading voice in women’s health in the UK. She is currently a fitness expert for ITV’s Lorraine, and has worked across major broadcasters including BBC 5 Live, Channel 4 and Good Morning Britain.
Hear more from Shakira on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/shakira.akabusi) and her StrongLikeMum (https://www.stronglikemum.com/) platform.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
17 Mar 2026
How Movember built a global men's health movement
Content warning: This episode features strong language throughout and references to suicide.
On his recent trip to Australia, William took the opportunity to sit down with Travis Garone, founder of the men's health charity and annual event Movember, as well as Dr Jaelea Skehan, Movember's Men's Health Advisory Committee Global Chair and Director of the mental health charity Everymind.
Over the course of the episode, we hear about Movember's history and brand, its contribution to global men's health strategies, as well as governmental and community-based approaches to suicide prevention.
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced, recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
3 Feb 2026
Is AI a friend or foe to public health?
This week, we are tackling a subject which has developed so rapidly over the last few years that almost every sector has had to reckon with it in form or another. That subject is AI and large language models.
To help shed light on what it means for public health, William is joined by Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London, and Martin McKee, Professor of European Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
They cover the risks and rewards of the technology, the effects it will likely have on the workforce, and whether governments are prepared to manage and regulate a technology that has the potential to be so transformative – for better or worse.
Find more information about our guests:
Martin McKee's work at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/aboutus/people/mckee.martin)
Follow Martin on Bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/martinmckee.bsky.social)
Christina Pagel's Work at University College London (https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/4185-christina-pagel)
Follow Christina on Bluesky (https://bsky.app/profile/chrischirp.bsky.social)
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced by David Utley-Williams and Ben Kosma
Recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
6 Jan 2026
Public health leaders share their 2026 hopes and fears
William Roberts interviews Tracy Daszkiewicz and Greg Fell, leading public health figures, who reflect on past successes and anticipate upcoming challenges in public health for the coming year.
17 Dec 2025
Lord Bethell on vaccines, prevention and redefining 90s clubbing
Lord James Bethell discusses his diverse career, from shaping 90s club culture to advocating for preventative health measures as a former health minister, in an interview with William Roberts.
18 Nov 2025
Is American public health facing an 'existential' moment?
William Roberts discusses the current state of American public health with David Utley-Williams, exploring the mood of the sector in light of cutbacks and policy shifts, in this interview episode; plus, William Roberts speaks with Simon Dixon about the Mayfield review into workplace health.
10 Oct 2025
The politics of public health
Richard Sloggett, Future Health founder, examines the political landscape of public health policy with William Roberts, addressing current governmental challenges and potential impacts of future election outcomes in an interview.
23 Sept 2025
Why grief matters as a health issue
Ines Thiru and Deepa Doshi from the Ruth Strauss Foundation discuss how grief impacts health, their mission to support families facing terminal illness, and their collaboration with RSPH on bereavement training in an interview with William Roberts.
22 Aug 2025
How do we solve the crisis of youth mental health?
Mental health campaigner Ben West shares his journey and insights on improving youth mental health understanding and treatment with host William Roberts.
23 Jul 2025
Why better homes mean better health
Faye Sanders, a Doctoral Researcher, discusses how housing quality profoundly impacts health, while Matthew Bazeley-Bell shares insights on the NHS ten-year plan in this interview episode.
25 Jun 2025
Could healthy high streets save our town centres?
Mark Robinson discusses the decline of British high streets and how to revitalize them by focusing on community needs, while Fernanda Aguilar Perez shares insights from the Streets Ahead report in this interview episode.
16 May 2025
Why haven't we fixed child poverty yet?
It's 2025, so why are we seeing child poverty – something often associated with the Victorian era – having such an effect on children and families?
To get to the bottom of the issue and its very real, direct solutions, William speaks to Sara Ogilvie, Director of Policy, Rights and Advocacy at the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG).
Plus, the team tells us about the latest from RSPH including our new high streets report (https://www.rsph.org.uk/our-work/policy/healthy-places/streets-ahead.html) and our major new public health education pathways offering (https://www.rsph.org.uk/qualifications/pathways.html).
Find out more about the Child Poverty Action Group at www.cpag.org.uk (www.cpag.org.uk)
Got a question for the podcast? Email podcast@rsph.org.uk (mailto:podcast@rsph.org.uk) and share your thoughts!
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced by David Utley Williams, Ben Kosma and Connie Seamer
Recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
22 Apr 2025
Are we losing the fight for global public health?
For the first ever episode of Spread the Health, host William Roberts speaks to Georges Benjamin, Executive Director at the American Public Health Association, in a fascinating chat about the setbacks to global health in recent months and how we can push back against them.
Georges tells us about decisions by the Trump administration and how they're impacting both domestic and international public health, the issues on the ground – such as social media and disinformation – that are affecting health in the United States, and what needs to be done to turn the tide back in the right direction.
Alongside the interview, the team at RSPH talk about recent public health topics including World Immunisation Week, mental health training for MPs and a recent award nomination for our work in violence prevention and reduction (VPR).
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced by David Utley Williams, Ben Kosma and Connie Seamer
Recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
1 Apr 2025
Coming soon: Spread The Health
Spread The Health is coming soon!
RSPH's new podcast will tackle the big questions in the public health world, from where we live and work to vaccinations and global health crises.
Join our host William Roberts along with David Utley-Williams and other members of the RSPH team as we chat with fascinating guests working to improve everyone's health.
Like and subscribe to get our first episode directly in your podcast feed, with special guest Georges Benjamin, Executive Director at the American Public Health Association (APHA).
Credits:
Hosted by William Roberts
Produced by David Utley Williams, Ben Kosma and Connie Seamer
Recorded and edited by Ben Kosma
Music by Ceton via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.
Who has been a guest on RSPH Presents: Spread the Health
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Tracy Daszkiewicz
Greg Fell
Lord James Bethell
David Utley-Williams
Simon Dixon
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Spotify
4.9 / 5
8 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 9 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
18
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
0
Contact RSPH Presents: Spread the Health
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
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