Education and health and joining forces in tackling child healthy weight

The Child Healthy Weight programmes are a response to the Scottish Government's HEAT (H3) target:'Each local NHS Board has been set a target to ensure that a specific number of overweight children complete a weight management programme.'

Awareness of HEAT 3 led to the development of 'CHANGE 3' as part of the Health and Wellbeing in Schools project in Moray, since then it has been incorporated into the Moray Community Health and Social Care Partnership's action plan with the intention to improve health and reduce health inequalities specifically with regards to HEAT 3 target.

It is well known that children and young people who are overweight and obese are at increased risk of a variety of chronic diseases and there is an increasing awareness of the impact that this could make on future health care costs. We also know that the achievement and maintenance of a healthy weight contributes positively to health and wellbeing.

This intervention (CHANGE 3) is the first step in a process. It is intended to stimulate debate, to recommend options for building on existing work and to develop new areas of work. It is a Scottish Government approved interactive, 8 week programme, aimed at children and young people from 5-16 years.

Led by school nurses:

• It is a holistic family centred approach to addressing the needs of children and young people, whose weight is above the healthy range for their age and height, within schools, their own homes and/or the community.
• The school setting is ideally placed to make experiences of food and physical activity positive. A whole school approach provides consistent messages, positive attitudes and behaviours. There has been awareness within education regarding practical food activities, however there needs to be more awareness of how health colleagues can support education colleagues in delivering such experiences and outcomes.
• Education and health staff partnership strengthens lifelong sustainability and success.

Links to National health and social care policy: As well as linking to the Scottish Government H3 target and the Scottish Government Health and Wellbeing in Schools project, the programme supports Scotland's Health Improvement Policy areas including:

• SIGN guidelines
• NICE guidelines
• Health for all children ( HALL 4) (2005)
• Curriculum for Excellence: Health and well-being outcomes and experiences(2009)
• School (Health promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Act 2007
• Healthy Eating Active Living (2008)

The programme has been developed by joining existing resources for example using the school sports co-ordinators, Active Schools Coordinators, paediatric dietitians, local clubs, community food initiatives, and Confidence to Cook programmes.

It is NOT a weight loss programme more of a maintenance and lifestyle choices programme so that children can grow into the weight they already have within their capacity of growth.

Lianne McLean

Lianne is currently working as a school nurse seconded to the health and wellbeing projects in schools within Morayshire, which is one of the 4 demonstration sites. Within her role she has developed a child healthy weight targeted intervention programme, which has been approved by the Scottish Government as a HEAT 3 target.

She is currently running focus on food training to education colleagues and she feel that this is very much the way forward in partnership practice. She has now secured funding for another year from HEAT Scottish Government money to role out this targeted intervention programme within Moray, however NES (NHS Education Scotland) have also recognised this work as the way forward in community nursing. This is very much linked to Curriculum for Excellence and using resources already existing within localities.

Additional speaker: Barbara Stearn