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Wales is making some progress in the drive to encourage people to become more active, according to a report by the Auditor General for Wales. The Assembly Government’s physical activity strategy Climbing Higher has brought together the different public, private and voluntary organisations responsible for promoting physical activity. The strategy has acted as a catalyst to stimulate change, but there still needs to be more coordination on the part of those involved, if the full benefits are to be realised. There should be better leadership at a national level; initiatives should be evaluated more effectively and local and national strategies should be better aligned. The Free Swimming scheme, introduced in 2003 for children and older people, could also be improved.
Levels of physical activity in Wales are low. Only one third of adults in Wales carry out the recommended levels of physical activity per week and nearly half of adults are classed as inactive. The Assembly Government’s 20 year strategy is designed to bring a long-term solution. But, the complexity of the issue requires the involvement of a large number of organisations, increasing the risk of inefficiency and ineffectiveness.
There are several factors which are hindering the Welsh public sector from delivering Climbing Higher. For example, there is no named responsibility for increasing physical activity in Wales and roles, responsibilities and accountabilities are not defined. This increases the potential for confusion, duplication of effort and inefficiency. Partnership working across Wales is patchy and funding is short term, which hinders long term planning. Efforts to increase physical activity have been largely driven at both the national and local levels by sports and leisure departments. This can deter people who have no interest in sport and could limit support and investment from other agencies.
Also, all plans and initiatives to promote physical activity should be based on firm evidence and their success should be evaluated. However, Climbing Higher and its follow up paper Climbing Higher - Next Steps, fails to set out comprehensive and specific evaluation mechanisms.
The Welsh Assembly Government does intend to address some of the issues by setting up a cross-departmental group. Today’s report also makes a series of recommendations to promote further improvement. These include:
- The Welsh Assembly Government should establish a high level Climbing Higher steering group and appoint a named individual to oversee and co-ordinate all physical activity work in Wales;
- The Welsh Assembly Government should clearly define and agree roles and responsibilities and accountabilities for action between the leading organisations involved in the delivery of the physical activity agenda;
- Local physical activity plans should be developed in partnership with all relevant local authority departments, as well as Local Health Boards, the Sports Council etc;
- The Welsh Assembly Government and its partners should draw up a research and evaluation plan for Climbing Higher; and
- The Welsh Assembly Government should set national targets for participation in its Free Swimming initiative against the scheme’s key objectives.
Auditor General for Wales, Jeremy Colman said today:
“Public bodies need to sharpen up their efforts if they want to turn Wales into an active nation. Changing people’s behaviours is not an easy task, but a more coordinated approach from all organisations involved can make a difference. The Assembly Government’s strategy needs to be improved in some areas to encourage greater success at local level.”
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