Harrow revealed to be home to 2 of London's healthiest high streets

Harrow is home to two of London's healthiest high streets, a new study has revealed.

The Royal Society of Public Health (RSPH) report ranked the 10 healthiest and 10 unhealthiest high streets in the country and in the capital.

No London high street is among the healthiest or unhealthiest in the country but several west London streets are in the capital's top and bottom 10.

RSPH research found people living in towns or neighbourhoods with lots of betting shops and off-licences die younger than those surrounded by plenty of libraries and pharmacies.

The Health on the High Street: Running on Empty report ranked the health of high streets by looking at the shops and businesses along them.

Points were given for pubs and bars, dentists, opticians, libraries, leisure centres, museums and galleries, pharmacies, coffee shops and vape shops.

But they were deducted for betting shops, payday lenders, fast food outlets, off-licences, tanning salons and empty shops.

On this basis Harrow has the third and seventh healthiest high streets in London.

Pinner High Street was ranked third healthiest in the capital while Kingsbury (which runs through Harrow and Brent) was seventh.

Brent was the worst off west London borough with two of its high streets among the least healthy. Neasden and Harlesden were ranked seventh and eighth.

Harrow may be home to one of London's healthiest high streets but it has one of the highest Type 2 diabetes rates in the UK.

We spoke to independent businesses along Pinner High Street to find out how it's setting the standard for healthy living in Harrow.

Angie's Chemist

3 High Street, Pinner, HA5 5PJ

Pharmacy dispenser Jassoda Shibchurn, 42, said Angie's is "the best pharmacy in Harrow" and wasn't at all surprised that Pinner High Street was rated the third healthiest High Street in London.

She said: "I'm not surprised at all - not all the shops on the high street are healthy of course, there's a café which serves sugary drinks but there's also a health food shop and another good pharmacy nearby.

"It's up to people where they eat or shop of course, there are fast food places along here which draw in younger people but our customers don't go there."

Jassoda believes Angie's plays a key role in keeping Pinner healthy.

She said: "We've been serving customers for more than 20 years and provide an excellent service. People come from all over west London to use us. I've been working here for 15 years and I reckon we're the best pharmacy in Harrow."

Organically

40-42 High Street, Pinner, HA5 5PW

The 70-year-old co-founder of Pinner High Street's vegan café, Organically, Ross Webster reckons he runs the healthiest café on the High Street.

He said: "It's a pleasant surprise to find out we're one of the healthiest high streets.

"I wouldn't have imagined it because there are lots of big chain restaurants and cafés along here."

"We serve vegan and gluten-free food and we're looking to extend our range. Most of our customers are young mums and retired people. I'd say we're the healthiest café on the High Street."

Foodie Wuwdies

High Street, Pinner, HA5 5PW

The owner of family-run catering company Foodie Wuwdies, Beverley Kelly, 53, would like to live in Pinner but "can't afford to."

Houses sell for up to £2 million a pop and Beverley reckons its wealthy population are part of the reason the high street is so healthy.

She lives in Wembley, in Brent, where nearby Neasden and Harlesden were ranked among the unhealthiest high streets in London.

Beverley said: "I can vouch for Harlesden and Neasden high streets being unhealthy.

"I'm not really surprised about Pinner High Street - it's a nice area, it's an affluent area. Brent doesn't have the same money in the borough. I'd like to live in Pinner but can't afford to."

What do the politicians think?

Pinner's councillors said the community was to thank for keeping the high street so healthy.

In a joint statement, they said: "We are very proud of Pinner and it’s thriving community of hard-working people who bring our high street of busy cafés, restaurants and shops to life.

"We are delighted to learn that Pinner has been ranked as the third healthiest high street in London. This could not have been achieved without local people supporting their local high street and being proud of Pinner.

"There is always room to improve and we will be working with the council to continue to improve public health across the borough by following Pinner’s great example."

Not without its health issues

Despite having two thriving high streets the borough of Harrow is not without its health issues.

A 2018 Diabetes Care Report by Harrow Health Watch showed Harrow has the third highest number of Type 2 diabetes cases in the UK.

According to the report there are currently 16,927 people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in Harrow - higher than the national average.

Obesity and lack of physical exercise are among the main causes of Type 2 diabetes and the report estimates around 14.2% of the new Type 2 diabetes cases in Harrow could be prevented if adults were 100% active, and 5.6% prevented if adults were 50% active.

But some ethnicities are also more at risk of having the condition and 42% of Harrow’s population is Asian and 7% black.

Type 2 diabetes is six times more common in people of South Asian origin and up to three times more common in people of African and African-Caribbean origin.

Brent Cabinet Member for Public Health, Culture and Leisure, Councillor Krupesh Hirani, said:

"This is an issue we have been constantly grappling with. Brent Council has limited powers to control who purchases buildings on high streets and what is sold in them. We have managed to amend our planning policies to ban new fast food outlets within 400 metres of secondary schools but even this had to go through the Government's Planning Inspectorate which roughly took two years to get through.

"Council's have limited powers for existing outlets but we are trying to improve their menus and cooking practices and in response have developed the Healthy Catering Commitment which 44 business have signed up across the borough including fast food outlets in Neasden and Harlesden. We have recently employed dedicated Town Centre Managers to work with the community and businesses to boost the health of our high streets but ultimately council's need more powers from Government to restrict businesses on high streets that cause social harm."