New resource: Sport and recreation public health interventions good value for councils

Resources released today by the King's Fund highlight that investing in the right public health interventions provides an excellent financial return for councils as well as improving the health and wellbeing of local communities.

The Health and Social Care Bill that came into effect in April of this year transferred the responsibility for public health from central to local government.

The new resources released today aim to highlight the most effective public health actions across the work of councils.

The authors have identified nine key areas where health can be improved and, unsurprisingly, sport and recreation are amongst them.

Examples of effective interventions from the resources include:

• prioritising access to green space, particularly for lower socio-economic groups, within neighbourhood plans and planning strategies
• investing in staff and working innovatively with the private and third sectors through partnerships or trusts, and engaging community groups to manage green spaces and run initiatives such as ‘green gyms’
• promoting active and safe travel – by encouraging walking and cycling, introducing 20-mph speed zones in areas with high accident rates and promoting the ‘Cycle to Work’ scheme
• granting free use of leisure facilities during working hours and at weekends.

Economic modelling contained within the resources also suggests that investing in leisure services to improve physical activity could be more cost effective in improving health than many medical interventions,while increasing access to green spaces could reduce the costs of obesity to the NHS by more than £2 billion.

David Buck, Senior Fellow, Public Health and Inequalities at The King’s Fund, said:

“Local authorities have a proud history of meeting crucial public health challenges and know better than most that improving health is not just about what happens in the NHS.

“As councils continue to face the most severe financial challenge in their history, there is a compelling business case for putting public health at the top of the local government agenda.

“But it is not always clear where investment will be most effective. In straitened times, we hope these resources will make it easier for local leaders to prioritise those areas where action will have the greatest benefit to communities.”

Tim Lamb, Chief Executive of the Sport and Recreation Alliance, said:

“We welcome these new resources to help guide local authorities in tackling public health issues.

“With the cuts hitting local authorities budgets hard – by as much as 40% if some reports are to be believed – it is more crucial than ever that we demonstrate how physical activity is a cost-effective and proven public health solution to a whole range of social issues.

“The cost to the NHS and the UK economy of inactivity is eye watering but the cost in terms of loss of quality of life to individuals and families is immeasurable.

“These resources showcase the evidence-based effective physical activity interventions available to local authorities – empowering them with the knowledge to make sure that at a local level councils can build a nation of healthy, happy people.”

Download the resources on access to green and open spaces and the role of leisure services.

Download the full report.

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