Nottinghamshire County Council and Your Health Your Way works with Sutton-on-Trent group to help secure its future

A seated exercise group under threat when its funding ended has been saved.

The group met at Sutton-on-Trent for 12 weeks under Nottinghamshire County Council’s Your Health, Your Way initiative, which aims to encourage healthier lifestyles.

Your Health, Your Way was commissioned to provide a falls prevention programme which aims to improve participants’ strength and balance to help reduce the risk of falling.

The programme includes exercises taught in a class and practice at home.

At the end of the 12 weeks members of the group appealed for help to continue their weekly meeting at the Methodist church hall.

Your Health, Your Way has now helped a member of the group to take a chair-based activity qualification. They have qualified and has since delivered two sessions and has also recruited two new members.

Although there is now a trained group leader, the Sutton-on-Trent group still wishes to find an exercise instructor to lead sessions.

Your Health, Your Way met with the group and local partners to help find a long-term, sustainable solution.

Raz Mohammed, head of communities at ABL, which runs Your Health, Your Way said:“Your Health Your Way’s aim is to support local community groups and work with them to become self-sustainable, while keeping informal connections in place

“We are continuing to look at other ways to support the Sutton-on-Trent group, including exploring other available funding routes and trying to identify another instructor.”

Catherine Pritchard, consultant in public health at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We commission Your Health Your Way to support Nottinghamshire residents to get active, lose weight, reduce alcohol intake and quit smoking. The service will also provide support for falls prevention and family weight management. We want to help our residents to live healthier and more independent lives and helping to support and establish groups like this, enabling them to become sustainable in their communities, is one of our priorities.”