Bringing Programmes Together

In the early days of Together an Active Future (TaAF), we worked closely with the Childhood Obesity Trailblazer Programme (2019-2022), a Local Government Association (LGA) initiative. Blackburn with Darwen Council was the lead authority for both programmes, which operated across a Pennine Lancashire footprint.

At the time, TaAF had dedicated resource but as a newly established local delivery pilot, relatively few connections across the system. In contrast, the Childhood Obesity Trailblazer Programme was well known, with strong relationships and credibility but limited capacity. Recognising the complementary strengths of both programmes, it was suggested a collaborative approach that would allow us to maximise our individual impact.

Listening to Elected Members

The Childhood Obesity Trailblazer Programme was led by Beth Wolfenden in Blackburn with Darwen’s Public Health Team, supported by Nicola Calder at Food Active, the local delivery partner.  Together, they organised six weekly Health and Wellbeing meetings for elected members from across Pennine Lancashire. These meetings provided an opportunity to share updates, discuss local health priorities and most importantly, listen to what councillors needed to support their decision making. During one of these sessions, we asked elected members a simple but critical question: “What can we do to help you understand the health of your communities better?

Identifying the Need

Councillors informed us they were time-poor and had limited time to read multiple lengthy reports.  Instead, they wanted a simple, accessible and engaging resource that would help them quickly understand the health challenges within their communities. And so, the idea of health and wellbeing infographics was born.

From Data to Design

Beth and Nicola compiled public health data, and we worked with councillors to identify the most important indicators. TaAF commissioned a design agency to bring the data to life, creating easy to understand district-level infographics using adult health and wellbeing data.

The response to the infographics was extremely positive and the project quickly expanded. We went on to develop Children and Young People infographics and in response to further feedback, created Assets and Opportunities infographics which highlights community spaces, facilities and opportunities where people can be active within their local area.

Widespread Impact and Use

The infographics were shared widely across the public, voluntary and community sectors. Feedback demonstrated that they were helping organisations better understand local need and being included as supporting evidence with funding applications.

What began as a simple request from elected members evolved into a sustainable system resource. Over the subsequent years, the infographics were reviewed and updated annually, ensuring partners continued to have access to current and relevant data.

Impact of the infographs

Evaluation of the Pennine Lancashire Trailblazer identified the infographics and wider training and support offered within the programme to elected members as key mechanisms of change. This supported the system leaders’ role and health and wellbeing priorities locally and across Pennine Lancashire.

Scaling Across Lancashire

Nicola Calder, now supporting the Lancashire Healthier Places Programme on behalf of Lancashire County Council, is now engaging with districts across the whole of Lancashire.  Aware of the positive feedback the infographics had received, she approached TaAF to explore whether we could create infographics for all districts in Lancashire.  Although our remit focuses on Pennine Lancashire, we agreed.

Ensuring Sustainability

At that point, we learned that Active Lancashire’s Evaluation team had developed a comprehensive dashboard covering the whole county. To avoid duplication and ensure sustainability, we invited them into the conversation. Today, Active Lancashire hosts the infographics on its website and has taken responsible for updating them as new data becomes available, ensuring the resource remains accessible, relevant and useful for partners across Lancashire.

The infographics represent far more than a set of data visualisations. They are an example of genuine system collaboration, where organisations aligned their resources, listened to the needs of elected members and worked together to create a solution. It shows how co-production, partnership working and a willingness to build on each other’s strengths can create a resource that not only meets an immediate need but continues to deliver value and support decision making years later.

In addition to Active Lancashire dashboard, the infographics can be found on the TaAF website in the resources and toolkits section.

To learn more about how we engaged with elected members,  please read the LGA case study and Food Active blogs below:

LGA Case Study: Pennine Lancashire Consortium of Local Authorities: Engaging and empowering system leaders to influence health and wellbeing in their communities

Food Active Blogs:

The Importance of Local System Leaders in Enabling Positive Change for Health

Pennine Lancashire Healthier Place, Healthier Future Programme, was one of five Childhood Obesity Trailblazers 

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NELP have identified nine ‘conditions’ that may be necessary for place-based approaches to address inequalities.  Each condition is itself made up of a range of activities and ways of working that combine to contribute to positive change.  NELP’s understanding of these ‘conditions’ has derived from explanations of change reflected in the process evaluations submitted by Place Partnerships nationwide, including TaAF.

The System Maturity Matrix provides descriptors of different levels of maturity in relation to these nine conditions and this has helped actors reflect on the extent to which conditions are present in the place-based system in which they are working.  If you’d like to learn more about the System Maturity Conditions for Place-based Systemic Approaches to Physical Activity Inequalities click here.

Following analysis based on these conditions, TaAF is proud to be regarded as a ‘mature system partner’.  In addition, each of our network leads have received feedback for their individual areas.

“Thanks again for the time and effort that you [TaAF] and your partners and colleagues have put into responding to the NELP CCA surveys and moderation process over the last few months”, NELP comment.

The NELP moderation process is extremely thorough and designed to ensure they have consistency of interpretation of the system maturity levels across different places. To achieve this our NELP lead Rachael McHugh, has participated in a series of meetings to discuss the individual conditions with other Place Partners across the country (click here if you’d like to watch the recordings), attended moderation meetings and provided further information where required.

TaAF developed a helpful set of questions to guide colleagues through the NELP Systems Maturity Matrix Survey — check them out here.

In this blog we share the nine ‘Conditions for Change’ against which we TaAF, have been measured:

The conditions for change and their definitions are:

Identifying the barriers and enablers of physical activity

There is process for developing a deep understanding and (shared) knowledge of what supports and/or prevents people being physically active, within the local context.

Actions which are based on a deep understanding of the barriers and enablers of physical activity are more likely to lead to effective and sustainable outcomes. Sharing knowledge of barriers and enablers can help drive a common purpose and common strategy – increasing likelihood of collective impact on what matters most.

Organisational policies, processes, and structures enable place-based working

Policies, administrative systems, structures and processes effectively enable and encourage place-based ways of working to address inequalities.

The ways in which organisations work together, and how they engage with communities, are often shaped by their organisational structures, policies, and practices. This includes the ways in which information is captured, used, and shared, or not. For example, how team structures align with communities and partners, the ways in which success is measured, and who is able to make or influence decisions. These processes affect how we view and relate to people and communities, with real impacts in people’s lives, but they often go unnoticed or taken for granted. Effective Place-based working requires us to proactively identify, challenge and change these systemic factors.

Capacity and capability across the workforce, volunteers and in communities

Action to develop capacity and capability across the workforce, volunteers, and communities to work in a place-based systemic approach to enable physical activity.

Specific skill sets and attributes are needed to for this type of responsive working. (E.g. to identify barriers and enablers, distribute leadership and collaborate). These skill sets and attributes are not inherently present amongst the existing workforce, volunteers, and communities. Alternative skill sets and attributes can actively block progress. Strategies for building capacity and capability, tailored to the local context, can increase competence and motivation to act in ways which are conducive to tackling physical activity inequalities.

Collaboration

There is productive partnership working around a common purpose.

Working with different organisations can help to drive innovative physical activity policy and practice by drawing on different skill sets, and increase impact by reducing duplication and/or pooling resources. Working with different organisations can support shared problem solving and unravel contradictions in local systems which prevent physical activity or contribute to inequalities.

Leadership

Policymakers, workforce, volunteers and residents act together to build on strengths and remove barriers for tackling physical activity inequalities.

When decision making, resources and initiatives are less centralised, people in all roles can contribute towards enabling active lives. Everyone’s contribution is equally valued. Established leaders can use their power to legitimise physical activity (alone or as a recognised aspect of wellbeing/thriving/prevention), challenge prevailing views and structures which create inequalities, and prioritise whole system and place-based ways of working.
Individuals across multiple layers of society, including people who are inactive, can shape decisions about what works to enable physical activity; this can lead to better strategies and outcomes.

Community Led Action

Action is shaped and led by communities and supported by community-focused strategies.

When community members engage at their pace and in spaces that they can shape, they are more likely to engage and collaborate. This approach often leads to more appropriate actions that enable physical activity. Where there is community-led action on wider inequalities then the this may contribute to a sense of ownership and control over their own lives.

Cultures and practices that enable physical activity

There is a culturally inclusive social environment for physical activity which enables people to move more in ways that suit them.

How physically active we are is shaped by the cultural contexts of our lives; what behaviours we intuitively feel are normal and expected for ‘people like us’. This may vary with the contexts of our lives, whether we are at work or school, with family or engaging with wider interest groups and communities around us.

People may not relate to those they see engaging in physical activity, due to identity or culturally based differences, including gender, (dis) ability, social class, sexual orientation or ethnicity. These feelings maybe reinforced by practical barriers, such as clothing or equipment needed, or past experiences of exclusion, humiliation or shame. By working respectfully and constructively with people within less active communities and groups, we may find ways to enable changes in perceptions, beliefs, practices and values.

Built & natural environments that enable physical activity

Local natural and built environments are attractive, accessible and safe, encouraging movement and physical activity.

Actual and perceived characteristics of the natural and built environment affect physical activity behaviours. Accessible, appropriate, affordable and safe environments are unequally distributed in society, but appropriate design and/or management of such spaces can help to address this. This may include access to blue and green spaces, urban planning, and workplace design.

Cycles of learning and action

There are appropriate methods in place to learn from experience and, over time, improve place-based working to address physical inactivity.

Physical inactivity inequalities are the result of multiple interacting influences, which makes it difficult to understand cause and effect in simple terms. We have to accept that some degree of uncertainty and partial knowledge.

We can, however, build better understanding of how particular actions and ideas work and the contexts in which they typically do or do not.  Gathering and apply this information can provide ‘decision support’ to guide future actions in context.

These conditions represent our current understanding, based on existing theory and emerging evidence; however, they may be refined as our understanding of systemic transformation grows.

The above text has been extracted from NELP’s ‘Overview of the conceptual model and conditions for tackling inequalities in physical activity‘.  To read the document, click here.

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Together an Active Future, Active Lancashire, Food Active, and Lancashire County Council have collaborated to develop a series of ‘Health and Wellbeing’ infographics for all districts in Lancashire.

These infographics provide district-level data on a wide range of health indicators, offering at-a-glance information to help empower decision makers in our communities.

In addition, to complement the Health and Wellbeing infographics, we have developed an ‘Assets and Opportunities’ infographic, which lists public places and spaces where people can be more physically active. (We’d like to note that the infographics don’t capture the full impact of the numerous programs, initiatives, and dedicated efforts that have contributed to improving residents’ health and wellbeing.)

Why and who were the infographics developed for?

During TaAF’s pathfinder phase, we partnered with the Pennine-wide Childhood Obesity Trailblazer program (supported by Food Active). During engagement and consultation, Elected Members expressed a need for data presented in an easy-to-understand format, many commented on the challenges of reviewing lengthy academic documents on a wide range of health conditions.

After looking at various infographics, we gathered feedback on design and content and incorporated their preferences into the current template; a concise resource which enables them to focus on the issues that matter most in the communities they serve. It’s important to clarify that these resources aren’t intended for sharing with the general public.

TaAF has shared the infographics with a wide range of partners across numerous sectors.  We are really pleased how these resources have been utilised with some organisations commenting that they have found the infographics valuable when applying for grant funding. The independent data provided has strengthened their applications and demonstrated the need for investment. The infographics have also proven to be ideal for helping to identify the enablers and barriers to physical activity, supporting more informed decision-making and planning.

Scaling up our success

On behalf of Lancashire County Council, Food Active are currently engaging with Elected Members across the county. Knowing how successfully the infographics were received in Pennine Lancashire, Food Active contacted TaAF and asked if it would be possible to develop the same resources for all districts in Lancashire, which we agreed to do using data provided by Food Active.

Always keen to collaborate, TaAF invited Active Lancashire to get involved as we felt they have a better understanding of the assets and opportunities across the county.  If you haven’t seen it yet, we encourage you to check out Active Lancashire’s dashboard which provides more useful statistics at a district level.

Research | Active Lancashire

Next Steps 

We hope you find these infographics useful and encourage you to share them with your network and other stakeholders who need to make informed decisions on health and wellbeing issues.

If you’re looking for children-specific data, please visit the CYP infographics on the resources page of the TaAF website. Resources – TaAF – Together an Active Future

To access and download the infographics for all Lancashire districts, please visit Lancashire Healthier Places – Health and Wellbeing District Infographics

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The event was an opportunity for representatives from Together an Active Future, Blackburn with Darwen Council, Active BwD and the national We Are Undefeatable campaign team to inform storytellers how their stories have been shared locally and nationally, the impact they have had so far and importantly thank them for their involvement.

We Are Undefeatable is a national campaign led by 15 leading health and social care charities, backed by National Lottery funding through Sport England which aims to inspire people living with long-term health conditions to be more active and help them improve their overall health and wellbeing.

During the summer and autumn of 2024, the campaign involving sixteen local residents being active in a range of different ways, featured prominently on bus shelters, digital screens in the town centre, on social media, on posters in healthcare settings and council-owned buildings, and in printed publications.

Watch our 2 minute overview from the storytellers here:  https://youtu.be/7h-TZIoXc7A

Storytellers were proud to share how they felt about being involved in the campaign:

“This campaign has been very motivational and inspiring. I’ve loved being inspired by the other storytellers, we can feel alone sometimes, this campaign has showed me that I’m not!”

“It’s been an honour being part of it.”

“I feel valued as a storyteller and finally feel understood. After years I have finally been able to explain what I do being the scenes to manage my breast cancer.”

Evaluation of the campaign is underway, and initial findings show that it has reached tens of thousands of people in Blackburn with Darwen, with 1 in 2 residents feeling inspired to take action as a result of seeing the campaign.

The public reaction to the campaign has been very positive with 9 in 10 stating that it shows people living with long term health conditions can be active, and that it shows how moving more can enable people to enjoy more in life. Almost half of residents surveyed took action as a result of seeing the campaign, including starting on their physical activity journey, increasing their activity levels, speaking to others about being more active, and reaching out to local providers for more support.

Peter Dutton, National Activation Manager for the We Are Undefeatable campaign, said:

“It’s been a fantastic journey localising We Are Undefeatable in Blackburn with Darwen, and it’s important that we stop to celebrate the impact and achievements to date, alongside campaign storytellers and many local partners involved. The campaign has been well-recognised across the borough. It has provided positive physical activity messaging and imagery for people living with health conditions, and has inspired people to take action as a result.

This campaign has received both local and national recognition, with Blackburn with Darwen leading the way as a trailblazer. The campaign has provided rich learning to date, and the best practice that has been unearthed is already influencing other places and organisations to take similar approaches across England.”

Read more about the campaign here:  https://taaf.co.uk/workstreams/we-are-undefeatable/

or watch our webinar here:

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