Introduction
Walk into Wellness brings together a range of service providers from the community, voluntary, health and statutory sector to work in partnership to drive the co-ordination and delivery of high quality walking provision that is safe and usable within Hartlepool to address mental and physical health issues and wider social outcomes.
What happened?
Walking is recognised as a low level activity to get people moving more to address a wide range of physical, mental, health and social issues. Across Hartlepool there is a broad range of great walking provision delivered by a range of providers, however it was fragmented and there was a strong desire and need to join the provision up to provide a better pathway for people and professionals to access the appropriate opportunity based on their need as well as to develop a supportive walking community ethos to support the walking providers in their development. This was particularly needed as services such as primary care are recognising the value of physical activity and the resources in the VCS to support them in achieving their organisational goals. The Walk into Wellness Steering Group was created with the below set of functions;
· Establishment of trusting working relationships with all individuals, organisations and agencies involved with walking provision in Hartlepool
· We will join up walking provision with partners strategic aims to improve pathways for residents to access appropriate opportunities
· We aim to collectively encourage and enable greater participation in walking across all demographics in Hartlepool
· We will identify gaps in provision and agree on key priorities that will address these gaps to improve walking provision
· We will collectively identify and share resources for walking provision
· To build stronger partnerships within primary care and develop appropriate referral pathways that will enable primary care workforce to refer patients to walking provision to improve long term health conditions
· Identify, develop and promote a centralised walking provision system that makes it easier for community members and professional services to access to information
· We will ensure walking providers are supported with the appropriate access to relevant training to ensure quality experiences for participants
· We will collectively raise the awareness & celebrate the benefits of the impact of walking on mental and physical health issues
To launch the centralised system, raise awareness of walking to address wider social outcomes, celebrate the walking provision and promote the promotional materials such as the QR code, posters etc a celebration event is being held on Tuesday 20th February with a range of walks at Summerhill Country Park.
Who was involved?
A range of partners from the VCS who are delivering walking provision or who have a interest in walking, Health Sector professionals including social prescribers, community navigation teams, waiting well, Public Health, Active and Creative Leisure, Tees Valley Sport, PFC Trust, Hartlepool Sport.
When?
A centralised online system has been created and the goal is for all walking provision to be advertised on the system along with a referral process that will make it easier for health service professionals to refer patients to the appropriate activity.
Where?
Walk into Wellness meets every 6 - 8 weeks as a whole group. Since the establishment of the group many new partnerships have evolved and worked together with services to expand walking to address organisational needs. Patients are also directly referred from GP's and social prescribers to the walking groups to support with their long term health conditions.
So?
It was identified that people were not aware of the benefits of walking to address wider social issues as well as not aware of the existing opportunities and how to refer the people they work with into the activities. It was also identified that as in particular the VCS are becoming more integrated into primary care services, the referral process and other issues needed to be identified to meet the standards of primary care to ensure high quality and professional services were being offered. Joining walking provision up in Hartlepool raises the profile of walking as an activity to get people to move more, supports in the redefinition of what being active means and makes it easier for professionals and communities to access the right provision to suit their needs. It also demonstrates who a range of non - traditional organisations are embedding physical activity into their core services such as homelessness night walks and asylum seeker walks to get to know your community.
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