Moving in the right direction to become a more active county
13 Feb 2025
Being more physically active can boost our health and reduce the need for prescribed medication such as blood pressure tablets, anti-depressants and painkillers. In this year’s Annual Report Gill O’Neill, Northumberland’s Director of Public Health, explains the physical and mental benefits of moving more, and the positive difference that even small increases in activity can make.
Each year Directors of Public Health in England write an Annual Public Health Report on the health of the local population. The report helps inform people about the health of their community, as well as guiding provision of local health and wellbeing services.
Recommendations in the report to help move towards a more active Northumberland include:
- Refresh the Northumberland physical activity strategy.
- Develop design codes in Northumberland to consider physical activity in neighbourhood design and include in new countywide Housing Strategy.
- Continue to support development of good quality walking and cycling routes.
- Places Leisure continue to develop our Active Communities offer so that people in Northumberland can have access to inclusive opportunities.
- Support communities to start new initiatives to become more active, such as through Thriving Together, an organisation that aims to bring the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector together to make a positive impact on the lives of Northumberland residents.
- Northumberland’s new Leisure and Wellbeing contract to continue to support the strategic objectives within the county, aiming to reduce the inactivity gap and have a more physically active population.
Gill O’Neill said: Improving and protecting the public’s health is my core statutory responsibility. Working to ensure equity in health outcomes and tackling the inequalities our residents face is something I take incredibly seriously.
“Being active doesn’t have to take up hours of time or require lots of equipment. Small changes make a big difference and step by step increases in the amount of activity we do contributes to improvements in health and quality of life. Activities we can build into daily routine such as using the stairs rather than the lift, getting off the bus a stop earlier and walking the rest of the way, or carrying our shopping home are all small changes that can make a big difference over time.”
The report can be found in full here –
https://beta.northumberland.gov.uk/public-health/public-health-reports-and-strategies
Northumberland County Councillor Veronica Jones, Cabinet Member for Public Health, said: “We know that being active every day is a good foundation for a healthy life and the more time we spend being active, the greater the health benefits are.
“This report helps to identify where we are already succeeding and how we can work together to use the knowledge and skills we have to ensure we support all Northumberland residents to be active and lead healthy, happier lives.”
Northumberland County Councillor Jeff Watson, cabinet member with responsibility for Healthy Lives, said: “The environment we live in has a major impact on our quality of life and the amount and type of physical activity we do.
“In Northumberland, we are lucky to have many opportunities to participate in physical activities right across the county, with large areas of countryside and coastline, and a network of parks and open public space.”
For those who are ready to start moving more and are looking for gentle exercise ideas, visit a local leisure centre to learn about available classes, or try one of the free health walks available across the county.
To find out more about health walk locations, please contact Northumberland County Council’s Health Trainer Service by email: HealthTrainers@northumberland.gov.uk or telephone: 01670 623 840.
Places for Leisure also offer free health walks across the county. Find our more here:
www.placesleisure.org/northumberland/wellbeing-walks/