Campaign guide supports people with long-term health conditions
UK Coaching and partners, including Activity Alliance, are supporting a new campaign for people with long-term health conditions. The dedicated workforce guide for We Are Undefeatable includes our successful 10 principles and Inclusive Activity Programme.
15 leading health and social care charities have come together for the first time to launch We Are Undefeatable. It’s a campaign to support people with long-term health conditions to build physical activity into their lives. That’s in a way people’s conditions allow, and to celebrate every victory big or small.
It comes with expertise, insight and significant National Lottery funding from Sport England. The campaign is part of the sports council’s long-term drive to change cultural and social norms. This includes long-term health conditions and physical activity. It’s about helping more people get active in a way that’s right for them.
Currently, over one in four people in England live with at least one long-term health condition. They are twice as likely to be leading an inactive lifestyle than those living without one. However, being active can contribute towards the management of over 20 health conditions. This includes depression and type-2 diabetes. It can also reduce the risk of developing some conditions by up to 40% and can delay the onset of and reduce the severity of many.
UK Coaching has created a dedicated We Are Undefeatable section on its website with partners’ support. It provides coaches, as well as the organisations that employ, deploy and support coaches. It gives them the reassurance they need to help people with long-term health conditions to be active.
The page highlights a range of guides and resources available to coaches, and reinforces the power of Great Coaching as a tool to help people with long-term health conditions build a positive relationship with being active.
Head over to ukcoaching.org/weareundefeatable to check out the guide.
UK Coaching’s Director of Coaching Emma Atkins said:
“We are hugely proud to be involved in this ground-breaking campaign. For those living with a long-term health condition there are number of additional considerations that can make getting and staying active more challenging. This can lead to people thinking that being active simply isn’t for them. We Are Undefeatable aims to empower people with long-term health conditions to build activity into their life, unlocking the physical and mental well-being benefits of physical activity and sport.
“Through our learning and development platform, the coaching workforce will find valuable information to help them feel confident and competent in working with people with long-term health conditions and providing them with great coaching experiences.”
Sport England’s Strategic Lead for Health Sarah Ruane said:
“We are proud to have the support from partners like UK Coaching who bring to life the principles of the We Are Undefeatable campaign. Coaches have a vital role to play in helping people living with long-term health conditions feel able and supported to get active or play sport. The resources and guides on UK Coaching’s website will help them feel more confident and knowledgeable to do that well.
“Sport England’s work in this area is as much about the role of healthcare professionals and how confident they feel about promoting sport and physical activity, as it is about making sure that sport and physical activity opportunities provide the best experience for everyone. Essentially, we are interested in making the whole patient journey seamless, so they are both being encouraged to be active and have somewhere suitable and supportive to go to do it.”
Barry Horne, Chief Executive for Activity Alliance, said:
“We welcome this new campaign and have actively supported its development. This includes contributing to the workforce guide, which gives access to a wealth of resources and training.
“I’m delighted that the campaign centres on peoples’ positive experiences of being active. It shows the benefits which all of us could experience. We hope the approach will influence disabled and non-disabled people alike. The campaign also gives us all a unique opportunity to learn more from the in-depth evaluation. Activity Alliance is keen for all organisations to step up and take an inclusive approach to sport and activity. So being active becomes the norm for everyone!”
A brand-new website weareundefeatable.co.uk will be the main hub for the campaign, providing people with inspiration, reassurance and support for getting and staying active.
The charities involved are: Age UK, Alzheimer’s Society, Asthma UK, Breast Cancer Care/Breast Cancer Now, British Lung Foundation, British Red Cross, Diabetes UK, Macmillan, Mind, MS Society, Parkinson’s, Rethink Mental Illness, Royal Voluntary Service, Stroke Association and Versus Arthritis.
