How do local authority plans to tackle obesity reflect systems thinking?

A whole systems approach to tackling obesity has been recommended by Public Health England for several years. This qualitative study aimed to investigate whether systems thinking is reflected in local authority plans and strategies to tackle obesity, using the leverage points for intervention in a complex system, as a framework.

We sought to identify obesity strategies/plans for Southampton and 19 other local authority comparators (based on children's services and Office for National Statistics data). A healthy weight strategy was available for 10 local authorities and a qualitative document analysis was undertaken. The policy actions proposed in the plans were coded against the leverage points for intervention in a complex system and themes were developed to characterise interventions in each category.

A majority of actions included in the plans were categorised as 'Numbers, Constants and Parameters' which reflect downstream measures. However, there were examples of actions that could act on higher leverage points. In addition, some local authority plans included interventions that could act on 10 of the 12 leverage points suggesting incorporation of systems thinking.

Some local authority plans to tackle obesity do reflect systems thinking when viewed through the lens of the leverage points for intervention in a complex system. Interventions at higher leverage points should be prioritised by public health decision-makers, especially in a climate of competing agendas and limited resources.