At People Street, we believe that healthcare should be shaped by the communities it serves. Over the past five months, our grassroots cancer awareness sessions in Redbridge and Tower Hamlets have highlighted a deep misalignment between NHS health messaging and community beliefs, health literacy, and access to services.
Snapshot: In December 2024 we reached 99 women from Somali, Sylheti, Gujarati, and Pakistani backgrounds, many of whom face language and digital literacy barriers. Their message to us was clear: one-off awareness campaigns aren’t enough. They need trusted, culturally relevant spaces where they can ask questions, challenge misinformation, and build the confidence to take control of their health.
What We Heard
Women told us they don’t attend cancer screenings for many reasons—fear, misinformation, lack of trust, and practical barriers like digital exclusion and appointment accessibility.
But they also told us what works:
Face-to-face sessions in mother-tongue languages
A series of engagements that build trust and confidence over time
Support from community leaders who can respectfully challenge myths
Opportunities to engage with clinical professionals in safe, translated discussions
A whole-family approach, educating men and elders on the importance of screening
Building a New Approach
People Street was founded to be a bridge between communities and public services, ensuring that people’s lived experiences shape the policies and systems that impact them.
The insights from our grassroots cancer awareness project make it clear: we need to go further. That’s why we are launching a new project in the summer: The Centre for Health Empowerment—a community-driven initiative that moves beyond awareness to empowerment.
Through the Centre, we will:
✅ Tackle misinformation with participatory health literacy programs
✅ Support self-health practices so individuals feel in control of their well-being
✅ Shift the role of services from gatekeepers of patient data to collaborative partners in health
✅ Challenge outdated approaches, ensuring communities are treated as active agents, not passive recipients of care
The full project report for our Cancer Awareness project will be available at the end of April.
Join Us
In the summer of 2025, we will invite a small group of organisations to collaborate with us on this journey. If you believe in community-led healthcare and want to be part of a movement that redefines health equity, we’d love to hear from you.
The Centre for Health Empowerment isn’t just another initiative—it’s a call to action. It’s time to build a system where communities are not just consulted but empowered to lead.
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