Leaders from across the health sector have met to agree a new approach to embed physical activity into health and care systems, in an event hosted by ukactive at the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.

The event on on 22 November, titled Designing a Blueprint for Physical Activity within Integrated Care Systems (ICS), was the first step to establish a blueprint for the ideal relationship between the NHS and the physical activity sector.

A group of senior leaders from the NHS, Government, the physical activity sector, Active Partnerships and system suppliers met at the Community Stadium to establish a comprehensive approach to embedding physical activity into ICS health strategies.

Aligning with the Government’s planned ‘three shifts’ – from treatment to prevention, hospital to community, and analogue to digital – a draft blueprint was discussed and interrogated to identify how the physical activity sector can best support the NHS to drive prevention, how health and care pathways can be delivered in a community setting and the role of digital in facilitating this in practice within ICS.

Physical activity has a major role to play in addressing economic activity, long-term health conditions and reducing NHS waiting lists. Evidence has shown physical activity is essential in preventing more than 20 chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, many types of cancer, MSK conditions, depression and anxiety and dementia – and the physical activity sector generates more than £10.5bn in wider savings to the health and social care system in England.

The event represented an important next step in the conversation around how to recognise this clear evidence by creating the operating environment necessary for the seamless integration of physical activity into the health system, at a time when the Government is designing its 10-year NHS health plan.

Topics discussed at the event included:

• Driving prevention and behaviour change
• Creating partnerships and advocacy across the two sectors
• Addressing economic inactivity
• The role of digital in facilitating a relationship between ICS and the physical activity sector

Mike Farrar, chair of ukactive, said: 'The event in Sheffield formed the perfect opportunity to knowledge share and discuss tangible ways that the physical activity sector and the NHS can work together in the most seamless way possible.

'By working in partnership, our sectors can inform the Government’s 10- year vision for the NHS, support growth in the economy through reducing sickness absence, and longer-term can help to address economic inactivity, by creating local jobs, reducing waiting times for care and improving health outcomes within existing budgets.

'The journey has already begun, and our sector is committed to supporting the NHS in its mission to shift its approach from sickness to prevention and from the hospital into our communities.'

Andy Taylor, CEO of the Active Partnerships National Organisation, said: 'It was great to be at the event in Sheffield. Through organising this event, ukactive created another opportunity to bring together the physical activity and health sectors.

'Active Partnerships are already working closely with Integrated Care Boards as well as the wider system and its partners, and our network is playing a key role in designing and embedding physical activity pathways for health and care systems.

'The Active Partnerships network wants to provide as much support as possible to the NHS and the Government when it comes to driving prevention through increased physical activity, and we look forward to continuing our collaborative working with ukactive and others on this vital area of work.'

The components of an optimal relationship between the sectors – the ‘blueprint’ - that were discussed at the event, included:

1. Coordinate governance and oversight at the most senior level
2. Establish effective partnerships and networks at place and local neighbourhood level (to supercharge opportunities such as social prescribing)
3. Establish routine data sharing between the sectors
4. Deliver evidence-based physical activity programmes in prevention and treatment and care pathways (in mental, physical and social care – standardised and delivered reliably)
5. Deliver specific support to the elective recovery programme (working with both public and private sector providers)
6. Create opportunities for productivity/economic/workforce growth and employment opportunities (including return to work and reduction in short- and long-term sickness absence)
7. Commit to a shared approach to physical activity promotion, communication and campaigning
8. Develop existing small and partial interventions into comprehensive and financially sustainable programmes available and accessible to the whole ICS population