By Sue Heron - Head of Training Tatty Bumpkin Ltd and Paediatric Physiotherapist
The government has now published its long awaited obesity strategy.
The plan has been critised for lacking the original scope. Dr Wollaston, chairwoman of the health select committee, comments that its "really disappointing" that "whole sections from the original draft have been dropped", including measures on advertising junk food to children and on promotions such as two-for-one deals.
However, the document does support the need for children to have effective, high quality activity opportunities.
History – The Need
- Nearly 30% of children aged 2-15 years are overweight or obese
- Younger generations are becoming obese at earlier ages and staying obese for longer
- Reducing obesity levels will save lives as obesity doubles the risk of dying early. If you are obese as an adult you are 7x more likely to become a type 2 diabetic than adults of a healthy weight and will be more likely to suffer from heart conditions and even depression.
4 Activity Aims of the Obesity Strategy - Helping children be Bendy, Giggly, Clever and Strong!
1. All Children to Enjoy an Hour of Physical Activity Every Day
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| CMO Guidelines for Children aged 5-18 years |
- The government acknowledges that there is strong evidence that regular physical activity is associated with numerous health benefits for children. The UK Chief Medical Officers’ recommend that all children and young people should engage in moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity for at least 60 minutes every day
- Every school child should get at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day (UK Chief Medical Officer's Guidelines).
- 30 mins should be delivered in school through active break times, PE, extra-curricular clubs, active lessons, or other sport and physical activity events,
- 30 minutes should be completed outside of school time
- A healthy schools rating scheme. During inspections, Ofsted will assess how effectively schools use the Primary PE and Sport Premium funding and measure its impact on outcomes for pupils
- Public Health England (PHE) to develop advice to schools for the academic year 2017/18. This will set out how schools can work with the school nurses, health centres, healthy weight teams in local authorities and other resources, to help children develop a healthier lifestyle.
- Interactive online tool will be made available to help schools plan at least 30 minutes of physical activity for their pupils every day
2. Improved Co-ordination of Quality Sport/Physical Activity Programmes for Schools
- From September 2017, every primary school in England should have access to a coordinated offer of high quality sport and physical activity programmes, both local and national. To achieve this aim, the Government has asked the 'County Sports Partnerships' to work with National Governing Bodies of sport, the Youth Sport Trust and other national and local providers
- Supporting parents and carers. 'The Sport England Strategy' includes an investment of £40m for projects which offer new opportunities for families and children to get active and play sport together. This investment will focus on helping children acquire a basic level of competence in sport and physical activity as well as supporting them to have fun, regardless of their level of ability.
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| Tatty Bumpkin - encouraging EVERYONE to move! |
- Walking or cycling to school provides a healthy way to start the day. The Government will continue invest in these schemes and has committed to producing a 'Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy'. The first strategy will set out plans for investing £300m to support cycling and walking. It will set a clear target to increase the number of children walking to school as well as continued support for Bikeability cycle training for children.
3. Creation of a Healthy Rating Scheme for Primary Schools
- From September 2017, the Government will introduce a voluntary healthy rating scheme for primary schools. This scheme aims to recognise and encourage their contribution to preventing obesity by helping children to eat better and move more
- The scheme will help primary schools to demonstrate to parents that they are taking evidence-based actions to improve their pupils’ health
- The government will actively seek to involve parents in the rating process so they can be confident their children are attending schools which provide healthy food and opportunities for physical activity
- An annual competition will be created to recognise schools with the most innovative and impactful projects which tackle obesity amongst their pupils
- In 2017, Ofsted will undertake a 'thematic review on obesity, healthy eating and physical activity in schools.' This will provide examples of good practice and recommendations on what more schools can do in this area
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| Activity comes in many forms - it should be fun and inspiring! |
4. Support for Early Years Settings
- The Government acknowledges that the early years are a crucial time for children’s development
- 20% of children are overweight or obese before they start school and only one in ten children aged two to four meets the UK Chief Medical Officers’ physical activity guidelines for this age group
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| CMO Activity Guidelines for Children aged under 5 years |
- The Government will update the Early Years Foundation Stage Framework to make specific reference to the UK Chief Medical Officers’ guidelines for physical activity in the early years (including active play)
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| Leading the way? Tatty Bumpkin sessions are fully linked to the EYFS and the Curriculum for Excellence |
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