Children across the North are facing a health crisis and experts say physical activity must be at the heart of the solution.
As part of the national Child of the North #ChildrenFirst campaign, the University of Bradford has joined with universities across the North to call on the Government to adopt a “whole-of-school” approach to physical activity, backed by new research and international recommendations.
The campaign, coordinated by the N8+ group of universities, highlights the urgent need to tackle health inequalities affecting children in northern communities.
29.6% of children and young people (2.2m) in England are classed as inactive, achieving less than an average of 30 mins of physical activity per day .
5-6% of children have clinically significant difficulties with movement skills (around 540,000 in the UK) which negatively impact their ability to engage with physical activity and education .
Professor Andrew Daly-Smith, Associate Director for the Centre for Health and Social Care Research at the University of Bradford, said: “It is time for the Government to act. The health of our children is the worst it has ever been. We need to change the culture of our schools to raise the importance of health and well-being. Otherwise we will continue to deepen the health inequalities embedded within our society.”
Bradford’s research shows that movement can be transformative. The JU:MP (Join Us: Move Play) programme – co-led by the University of Bradford and Born in Bradford – has increased children’s physical activity by over 70 minutes per week, reduced weekend inactivity by 21 minutes per day, and delivered the largest population-level impact of any long-term intervention of its kind.
Dr Anna Chalkley, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Bradford, added: “We’ve worked with families, schools and communities to co-create opportunities for movement. When children move more, they thrive, physically, emotionally and academically.”
