1. 17 th May 2012

2. Health Literacy has been defined as “The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate and informed health decisions.” It enables individuals to access, use and understand information which promotes and maintains good health. It is essential we empower people to use health information effectively.

3.  People are often faced with complex information and decisions to make in unfamiliar surroundings. Skills required: Analysis of benefits and risks Understanding and calculating dosages Following instructions and understanding terminology Accessing health information Interpreting results and the information that is being communicated to them

4.  Department for Business, Innovation and Skills last year published Impact on Skills for Life 2011  Currently 24% of adults 8.1 million people lack functional numeracy skills  15% of adults 5.1 million people lack functional literacy skills  Peoples lack of basic maths and English remains a big challenge

5.  A report released in March 2012 revealed the hidden cost of functional illiteracy in the UK tops £81 billion each year, the highest in Europe. The new report from the World Literacy Foundation shows that nearly 800 million people across the world lack the basic reading and writing skills needed to accomplish simple tasks such as reading a medicine label or filling out a job application, costing the global economy more than $1.19 trillion a year.  According to the report, the UK suffers significantly from the costs of poor literacy: 22% of the UK's population is estimated to be functionally illiterate, meaning they may have difficulty with basic tasks such as applying for a job, understanding medicine dosages or reading a medical report. Illiteracy is estimated to cost UK economy approximately $127 billion a year (£81 billion) This is the highest in Europe, ahead of Germany $61.70bn or France $44.28bn

6.  We have currently 639 learners undertaking ESOL qualifications the majority at E1-E3  16-18 - 2496 enrolments undertaking a functional skills qualification in Functional English/Maths  Adult 19+ - 2273 enrolments undertaking Basic English or Maths qualifications  Provision is offered from Pre- Entry to Level 2 throughout Preston and on employer premises

7.  Health organisations need to work closely with other sectors including education, housing, finance, community groups, local authorities and employers.  We need to develop strong partnerships  We need to work together to embed Health Literacy into our programmes of study including our Basic Adult Skills for Life courses and our (ESOL) English as a Second Language initiatives