That’s a grave, shocking statistic for any parent, teacher or health professional in England to swallow as it means that ‘the system’ still doesn’t have the right answers and is failing our children.
Despite a Government plan to reduce England’s rate of childhood obesity within the next ten years published this summer, many health, children’s and education groups still don’t feel enough is being done. Celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver MBE who launched his own war on childhood obesity back in 2005, branded the plan a ‘complete stinking herring’.
The overarching aims of the government are to ‘encourage the food and drink sector to cut the amount of sugar in food and drinks and to help primary school children to eat more healthily and stay active.’ A number of recommendations around placement of sugary foods and drinks at supermarket checkouts, price promotions, advertising restrictions, labeling and tax on full sugar soft drinks to name a few have been made to the retail and food and drink industries respectively.
Overwhelmingly, the evidence shows that ‘healthy diets and a healthier weight can help the prevention and management of over twenty chronic conditions including type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.’ These conditions all have major, long-term implications to not just the child but the NHS and the wider economy too.
West Wakefield have an innovative and extremely successful way of empowering children to tackle the issue themselves
Coinciding with not just the health and wellbeing challenges of the District but the new coding curriculum requirements in primary schools, the Schools App Challenge competition was created to uniquely sit as ‘the intersection’ between health and education.
Launched by West Wakefield Health & Wellbeing back in January 2015 as part of the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund and now in it’s third year, the competition asks children to help co-create health apps. Apps that help other youngsters their age make good physical, mental health and wellbeing choices in the future.
What originally started out with just a handful of schools within West Wakefield’s footprint, the competition has now expanded to primary schools across Wakefield thanks to funding secured from NHS England, with the ultimate intention to roll out nationally from 2017.
Monster success
To date, two competitions have been successfully delivered to over 600 Year 6 students, who have designed over 70 health app concepts. This has resulted in two winning apps that West Wakefield have subsequently built, using the children’s designs, as cross-platform apps. ‘Dragon in the Attic’, a mental health and bullying app (http://dragonapp.me) and ‘Healthy Island’ a healthy lifestyle app to address childhood obesity and oral health (http://healthyisland.me).
Whilst the competition is specifically for Year 6 students, the benefits ripple effect has been seen across the entire schools taking part. Pupils involved have adopted a ‘health champion’ role which they have shared across their schools through assemblies, health week and sports days.
The competition has also helped Year 6 students with improved social and communications skills, team work, listening and asking for feedback, as well as greater confidence in tackling something worrying or stressful, at a key stage when they are preparing for secondary school.
Independent evaluation of the competition so far, provided by Niche in September 2015, reported a 90 per cent positive response from the children involved in the project. 70 per cent of the children involved cited that they had made a positive behaviour change to their health habits as a result of taking part in the competition and using the apps created.
The feedback has been incredibly positive from all those engaged in the project: children, teachers, parents & health practitioners. You can read more feedback from the children that have taken part here and from the teachers here.
A local system-wide approach that works
This is what has made the difference in Wakefield.
GPs and leaders from across NHS Wakefield CCG, Wakefield Council & Public Health and NHS England have supported various stages of the project including mentor sessions and judging events.
Child and Young People leads from across the Wakefield system including schools nurses, health improvement team (Change4Life), oral health team, Active Wakefield (1k a day), child obesity team, CAMHS, children centres & community hubs have also been involved.
A fantastic partnership that has been nurtured through the competition has been with Microsoft. They have been a key driver for schools’ involvement and both PSHE and ICT curriculum requirements can be addressed in one project.
The relationship built with Microsoft’s Imagine Academy and Rare Studios has ensured quality mentorship across health and ICT in equal measure through Skype calls direct to the classroom. They also provide the ultimate prize for the winning teams including a visit to the studios as well as some special Microsoft goodies.
It’s a unique ‘creative catalyst’ to children learning to code through the context of health.
Ready for round three?
Primary schools across Wakefield are currently being invited to take part in Schools App Challenge 3.0 as part of their response to the national challenge.
With all of last year’s schools chomping at the micro:bit to take part once more and the amazing value, not workload, that such a competition can bring to a school, Wakefield youngsters are truly waging the war on childhood obesity for themselves and having fun along the way.
You can find out more information about Schools App Challenge by contacting Emma Savage, Disruptive Prevention Lead at West Wakefield Health & Wellbeing at [email protected].
If you are a Wakefield school looking to register to take part, visit www.schoolsappchallenge.com.