Developing the public health intelligence workforce in the UK.

Recent UK health policies have consistently stressed the importance of basing local action on evidence and local intelligence. A suitably skilled workforce is required to achieve this. In recent years, a new cadre of skilled public health intelligence practitioners has emerged in the UK. This paper describes some of the steps taken by public health observatories and other organizations to grow and train this new workforce, and looks ahead to future developments building on the progress to date.