We're launching a series of short articles highlighting our new funds – starting with our major new investment to combat inactivity.
Each feature focuses on a specific fund, providing more information on the kinds of projects we might be interested to support. You'll also find key details about target audience and information on how to prepare to apply.
Take a look at our range of new funding options here.
Physical activity: the miracle cure
The figures on inactivity are stark. More than one in four of us do fewer than 30 minutes of physical activity a week. And a staggering 1 in 6 deaths is caused by inactivity. That’s the same as smoking.
inactivity fund launching in December
inactivity fund launching in December
But it only takes a small amount of regular activity to make a big difference – a brisk walk, a game of football in the garden with the children, rediscovering your love of table tennis – especially for those who are least active. It’s no wonder the chief medical officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies, describes physical activity as a "miracle cure."
Our strategy, Towards an Active Nation, puts tackling inactivity at the heart of what we do, and we’re going to triple the amount we invest in helping people to become active. As a first step, we will be investing up to £10 million into projects to help older people get active.
Why target older people?
Our research shows that as you get older, you’re far more likely to become inactive: 42 per cent of people aged 55 and over are inactive compared to 29 per cent of the population as a whole.
This can be for a range of reasons, not necessarily directly connected to age and physical ability. It can be work, greater family and caring commitments and even social attitudes about the ‘right time’ to start getting active.
It’s for these reasons that our first priority audience in tackling inactivity will be older people.
What are we trying to achieve?
As you might expect, we’re trying to reduce the overall levels of inactivity among this age group because it’s higher than the population as a whole. The benefits of doing even a little physical activity are huge. In particular, we’re trying to test new ways of tackling inactivity, finding approaches that could be replicated across the country and make a significant difference to many more people’s lives.
What insight is there available?
In a word – lots. This is a huge and very varied age group with significant differences – such as employment, experiences and views on life – making everyone unique. This shows that we need to work in a very targeted way, with options tailored to individual needs. We can’t just think about older people as a single age group.
We’re currently compiling all the relevant research and insight to help us and our partners to better understand inactive people, including their motivations, obstacles and life influences. We’ll be publishing this insight pack next week.