• Our directorates

    The Public Health Agency is made up of specialist directorates and teams that work together to protect and improve health and wellbeing and reduce health inequalities across Northern Ireland.

  • Leadership and governance

    Strong leadership and sound governance are central to how we protect and improve health across Northern Ireland. This section sets out how the organisation is led and held accountable, including our board, governance arrangements and the standards that guide our decisions and actions.

  • News and media

    Stay up to date with the latest from across the organisation. This section brings together our news, press releases, campaigns and media resources, keeping you informed about our work to protect and improve health and wellbeing across Northern Ireland.

  • Publications

    Explore our library of publications and resources, from reports and guidance to leaflets and toolkits. This section brings together the materials we produce to support health and wellbeing, making it easy to find, download and use trusted information across Northern Ireland.

  • Funding and procurement

    Find current funding and procurement opportunities, download guidance, and learn how to apply. We welcome interest from organisations of all sizes that can help improve health and wellbeing across Northern Ireland.

  • Get involved

    Find out how to get involved by taking part in consultations, sharing your feedback, making a compliment or complaint, and helping shape public health services through partnership and engagement.

  • Working at PHA

    The Public Health Agency (PHA) is a dynamic, multi-disciplinary organisation whose function is to improve and protect the health of the population.

  • Freedom of information

    The PHA is committed to being open and transparent in the conduct of all its business. We publish a great deal of information on our website already; however there may be issues on which you would like further information. This part of our website is dedicated to helping you find out more about how the PHA works, how we spend public money, and how and why we make decisions.

  • Making Life Better

    Making Life Better is Northern Ireland's whole system approach to improving health and wellbeing and reducing health inequalities. Find out about framework, the Making Life Better Network and how organisations work together to improve population health.

Who we are

The Public Health Agency works to keep Northern Ireland well. We tackle what makes people ill — from poverty and inequality to disease and emergencies — and back the communities, services and partners doing the work on the ground, so everyone has a fairer chance at a longer, healthier life.

  • Our Purpose

    PHA’s purpose is to: 

    • Protect public health;
    • Improve health and social wellbeing of people in Northern Ireland;
    • Reduce health inequalities;
    • Collaborate on health service planning and delivery.

    PHA works with individuals, communities, and organisations across all sectors to achieve these goals.

  • Our Values

    The PHA endeavours to embody the Health and Social Care values into its culture by:

    • putting individuals and communities at the heart of everything we do: acting with openness and honesty and treating people with dignity, respect and compassion;
    • working together in partnership: improving the quality of life of those we serve, listening to and involving individuals and communities;
    • valuing, developing and empowering our staff: striving for excellence and innovation;
    • being evidence led and outcomes focused.

Key priorities and strategic objectives 2026

The Public Health Agency (PHA) focuses on priorities that aim to protect and improve health outcomes and reduce inequalities. These priorities are: 

  • Health Protection
  • Starting Well
  • Living Well
  • Ageing Well
  • Our Organisation and People 

Our priorities and how we are doing