The national programme was established to support the Government’s ambition to halve childhood obesity and significantly reduce the gap in obesity between children from the most and least deprived areas by 2030. The three-year Trailblazer Programme delivered from March 2019 to June 2022, in partnership with the Local Government Association, with support from Public Health England (now the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities) aims to promote innovative action to tackle childhood obesity and associated health inequalities and generate useful learning on ‘what works’ in different communities.

The Healthier Place, Healthier Future project explained

Healthier Place, Healthier Future took a system-wide approach to transforming food environments

The Pennine Lancashire trailblazing vision is to implement a coordinated, systems approach to tackling childhood obesity across a complex geographical and political landscape, linking four levers for change to target high deprivation wards with concentrations of fast-food establishments and childhood obesity. The overarching project aim was to address the lack of diversity across local high streets and shop parades in some of the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods across Pennine Lancashire, by exploring current or underused levers for change, particularly around the accessibility and consumption of unhealthy food, to positively impact on childhood obesity.

Taking both a top-down and bottom-up approach, HPHF has worked with system leaders to engage and inspire action to support healthy weight and more broadly the health and wellbeing agenda; with food businesses to encourage a healthier offer; with planning authorities to support a healthier place and with the community to drive change and push for a healthier, accessible and affordable food environment.

A local programme evaluation is available which demonstrates how HPHF has increased awareness of the way in which district councils can contribute towards addressing issues such as childhood obesity and health. There is a clear commitment across districts and the county to continue to collaborate and to embed some of the successful approaches to reducing the prevalence of childhood obesity within Pennine and the wider Lancashire footprint.

Resources

A range of resources including toolkits, infographics, podcasts and reports have been developed during the delivery of the Trailblazer and are available via the links below.