Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support people to (a) stay active and (b) live longer in (i) Sunderland Central constituency and (ii) other areas.

The Government and the National Health Service recognise that prevention will always be better and cheaper than a cure, and that supporting the country to be physically active is important in helping people live longer, healthier lives.

The Department of Health and Social Care co-funds the Primary School PE and Sport Premium with the Department for Education, and the School Games Organiser Network with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, both of which enable schools across the country to support children to have fun and move more through physical education, sport, play, and other forms of physical activity. Building healthy habits early on, in and out of school, is essential to helping children thrive, develop, and stay healthy.

The NHS Better Health Campaign promotes ways for adults, families, and children to move more, and signposts to digital support like Couch to 5k and the NHS Active 10 walking app, an accessible way of building movement into everyday life. The NHS, together with local authorities, also promotes and provides services to support people in building movement into their lives, for instance through exercise on referral and social prescribing.

As part of their place expansion approach, Sport England will be meeting with the Sunderland City Council later this summer to discuss working with them on tackling inactivity and participation inequalities through a whole system, place-based approach.