Celebrating ten years of Healthy Schools

Date: 30 November 2009

Healthy Schools is currently celebrating ten successful years of supporting children and young people to lead healthier lives. More than 99% of schools in England are now working with Healthy Schools, making it one of the most successful non-statutory government programmes in schools today.

According to Jacky Tiotto, Director of Children and Learners at Government Office London, part of the reason for the widespread popularity of Healthy Schools is due to its flexible approach which is grounded in local partnerships.

Responsible for developing, commissioning, and managing a wide range of children’s services and monitoring the way in which they impact young people and their families, Jacky explains; “In London, Healthy Schools is really helping us to tackle a diverse range of issues facing our children and young people – including one of our biggest challenges, which is childhood obesity.

“There are approximately 1.72 million children and young people living in London. Nearly a quarter of our total population is school aged, and we know that good habits around things like diet and exercise are formed early on in life, so where better to start tackling this than in our schools?”

Reducing the proportion of overweight and obese children is one of the Government’s key current health priorities, and in 2008 the ambitious goal was set of reversing the growing tide of obesity by 2020 to mirror their levels from 2000. If current trends continue, 9 out of 10 children and young people risk growing up with dangerous levels of fat in their bodies, which mean they will be more likely to experience health problems later in life.

“By using the Healthy Schools framework in London, we have now successfully implemented a programme that helps us to weigh, measure and identify children at risk of obesity in their reception years, and to put in place a range of strategies that help to address poor diet and weight issues early on.”

Jacky continues; “I would say that Healthy Schools has helped us to create a seismic shift in our schools, both in terms of the attitudes and the awareness levels of children and young people about how their health choices now might affect their future, and the impact of Healthy Schools is now evident everywhere in our schools.

“Today, when colleagues and I visit schools, we can see that students are more equipped to make healthier choices for themselves. They know how to look after their bodies through regular exercise and eating healthily, and they also understand the reasons why - which is something they perhaps weren’t so aware of five or ten years ago.”

“Through our work with Healthy Schools, we have also seen big changes taking place in school culture, with our schools now taking far greater responsibility around the food they offer to children and young people through school dinners, vending machines and all other food outlets within the school grounds. There is also a much greater drive around the importance of the provision of drinking water throughout the school day, and greater awareness amongst both teachers and parents about the impact poor diet can have upon the concentration and attainment levels of children and young people.”

But for Jacky, Healthy Schools has proved a success not just because of what it teaches children and young people, but also through how it implements and delivers those core messages; “It is very easy to talk about what needs to be done to improve the health and well-being of children and young people but to actually get ‘buy-in’ and support from schools and local communities is often a very different matter.

“Healthy Schools works not just because the messages it promotes are important, but because it doesn’t tell schools what they can and can’t do. Instead, it gives local authorities and their partners the flexibility to implement school based activities and health interventions that cater for the specific needs of a community. I think this is particularly valuable for somewhere like London, where our schools and health services are trying to cater for such a diverse range of communities – it’s far more effective in this instance than taking a blanket, statutory based approach.

“As a result of this, I think that our teachers now feel more supported and better resourced in being able to establish fun and creative activities in school that can help children and young people to develop healthy behaviours.”

She continues, “Another important reason as to why I believe Healthy Schools has been so popular is because the values and messages it promotes also stretch beyond the school gate. In London, we still have some major health challenges to overcome. 41% of children are currently living below the poverty line, and there are big gaps between those experiencing the best and worst of health across our more and less affluent boroughs.

“I think Healthy Schools has the potential to make a real difference in our communities around important public health issues such as under-age conception because it helps children and young people to take ownership of their health and well-being, which is a really important step. In fact, we’re already seeing more and more children and young people really taking a lead on health at home by asking their parents or carers for fresh fruit in their lunch box, or for their drink bottle to be filled with water. ”

“Moreover, the programme actively encourages families and the wider community to get involved in their children’s learning, through consultations and inclusion. Getting this support from parents and carers at home is often one of the biggest challenges for any programme involving children and young people, but if parents know that a programme is supportive, without being forced upon them, and if it doesn’t single out their child, then it has a far greater chance of success.

“In London, our Healthy Schools teams and schools have worked hard and built strong relationships over the years, and as a result many after-school classes and creative support schemes have also started to develop for parents, teaching practical skills such as how to cook healthy meals on a budget, or how to pack a healthy lunchbox.”

Jacky Tiotto concludes; “Of course, there is no easy, ‘off the shelf’ solution for solving the health issues which affect children and young people – it takes lots of small, step by step changes which get children and young people to think about what changes they’re making and why. It also requires close partnerships between schools, local services and families which enable schools to better respond to the unique needs of children and young people in their local community. Healthy Schools has been highly instrumental in developing positive attitudes around the health and well-being agenda for our children and young people precisely because it recognises all of this, and moving forwards, I believe its impact will continue to grow as these partnerships develop further and allow for even greater levels of targeted support.

For more information about the National Healthy Schools Programme, please visit: www.healthyschools.gov.uk

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