Ensuring people across the UK can access healthy foods, which they are able to purchase, prepare and consume easily, is key to providing equitable access to a healthy diet. However, the relationship between food access and healthier food consumption is not yet clear.

Community Shop is a social supermarket that supports ten deprived communities in England. It is based on a membership model; all members receive government means-tested benefits. The model seeks to alleviate food insecurity by providing households with access to a retail space in which high-quality food is sold at discounted prices (approximately 30% of RRP).

Building on our partnership with Community Shop, we sought to deepen our understanding of the factors influencing food access and consumption. We wanted to get more evidence on the key factors that influence healthy food access as well as how effective interventions are to enable consumers to purchase healthier options. Understanding the nuanced factors involved in providing healthier foods to consumers helps the healthy life team consider how retail environments and community spaces across the country could broaden and secure healthy food access for more consumers.

To explore the factors influencing healthy food access and consumption, we took a multi-faceted research approach:

• Field research: we conducted immersive fieldwork to understand the Community Shop environment and the needs of its consumer groups.
• Data analysis: we examined eight years of purchasing data from Community Shop to identify patterns and trends in buying behaviour.
• Stakeholder engagement: we collaborated with Community Shop stakeholders and key partners to gather insights into how specific elements of the model impact healthy purchasing behaviours.
• Co-designed workshops: As part of our action-oriented research, we hosted workshops with representatives from Nesta, Community Shop, and its members. These workshops explored potential interventions to test the real-world impact of food environment design on healthier purchasing behaviours.