A DRUMCHAPEL Community Hub is calling for new approaches to be tried in a bid to tackle Scotland’s health inequalities.

The move comes after the National Health Survey was published by the Scottish Government on September 24.

It highlighted the huge variation in health between the most and least deprived areas.

A Health Defence team based at the Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland (CHSS) Hub has successfully become a key part of the community - and is working with 35 groups or organisations based in Drumchapel to help tackle the issue.

These include Zumba, Drink Wise Age Well, Men Matter support group, and cookery demonstrations.

The team provides health checks which are open to all, and aim to remove barriers that might prevent uptake.

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Rather than set appointment times, there are drop-in sessions, and the team goes out to local groups and community venues such as the Job Centre.

Space within the hub is free to use, and there is wi-fi and coffee and tea.

The recent survey showed that rates of cardiovascular conditions – such as heart disease or stroke – vary hugely depending on where you live.

Jane-Claire, of CHSS, said: “There should be no life half lived in Scotland. But we can’t do this alone. Everyone including the Scottish Government and the health service need to come together and redouble efforts to support front-line community services to tackle health inequalities head on.

“We’re changing the way we work to take on stubborn health inequalities in our communities.

“We offer free community spaces to bring people, local organisations and groups together. They’re bursting with life and activities, and have a whole variety of health, social and fitness groups meeting each week.

“Far too often where you live in Scotland determines how healthy you are and how long you live for. This is one of Scotland’s major injustices and we urgently need new approaches to tackle the problem head-on.”

The survey also showed that adults in the most deprived areas were more likely to have very low activity levels.