THE minister of health will be invited to tackle the health crisis in South Reading, it has been revealed.

South Reading has the lowest funded medical commissioning group in the country, despite being one of the areas with the highest need.

The Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) for the area is given just £1,000 for each man, woman and child it serves, £221 less than the national average.

Whitley and Church wards have the lowest life expectancy in the town along with the highest rates of child poverty and obesity.

Now Jeremy Hunt along with the town’s MPs and council leaders have been called for a crunch meeting to solve the funding crisis.

Jan Gavin, head of children’s services and families told Reading Borough Council they had to tackle the unfair funding.

“These health inequalities between north and south Reading have lifelong implications,” she said.

“South Reading has the lowest rate of breast feeding, the lowest take up of vaccinations, the lowest level of educational attainment, and all these things are linked.

“More should be spent in south Reading than is spent in north Reading per head of population given the inequalities and vulnerabilities of families that live in those areas.

“If we’re serious about improving the life chances of the people who live there and the life chances of the children who are born into those areas then we should be taking these inequalities very seriously.”

A motion put before Reading Borough Council on Tuesday, March 28, called on the council to try and organise the meeting by mid-April.

Council leader Jo Lovelock, deputy leader Tony Page, and lead member for health Graeme Hoskin, are expected to meet with MPs Alok Sharma, Rob Wilson and Jeremy Hunt to discuss the funding crisis.

Josh Pearce, who brought the motion, said: “The low level of funding in south Reading is unacceptable.

“This council will do what for public health but we do so with one hand tied behind our back.

“In Reading there’s a life expectancy gap of more than 10 years between wards in the south and some in the north.

“We also need to consider the fairness of this, the work and pensions committee has recently said the age of state pension could soon rise above people’s life spans in poorer areas.”

He called on the Berkshire authorities to unite in a bid to force a better deal from the Government.

A petition urging fairer funding has been signed by hundreds of south Reading residents.

Conservative councillor Jane Stanford-Beale said: “It’s of tremendous concern we have this health inequality in Reading.

“We need to attack this as a public health initiative not just through the GPs.”

The motion was passed unanimously.