Health – Primary Schools

The Health for Life programme promotes an ethos and environment which encourages a proactive approach to developing a healthy lifestyle.

The Health for Life in Primary Schools programme is funded by Mondelēz International and delivered by Services For Education. It aims to make a sustained and demonstrable improvement in healthy lifestyles across Birmingham. The Health for Life in Primary Schools programme supports primary schools in engaging their community in healthy active lifestyles and embeds the work in the school culture and curriculum to promote sustainability.

It is intended to increase pupils’ knowledge and skills and effect changes in healthy lifestyle attitudes and behaviour.

A Celebration Event is held halfway through the implementation phase (around June) and is a great way to share ideas; to motivate you all to continue, and to showcase the programme to VIPs like the Lord Mayor, MPs, people from the Local Authority, Public Health and the next cohort of schools.

At the end of the implementation phase there is an Awards Ceremony to celebrate and recognise the work that you have all done.

We invite 2 members of staff and up to 4 children to each event to showcase what they’ve done that they are proud of.

Around 12 schools are selected each year to take part in the Health for Life in Primary Schools Programme in order to ensure that each school has a sufficient level of support.

Selected schools will take part in the programme for a period of four terms. During this time they will receive support to plan and implement the programme to suit their particular circumstances.

We do require a level of commitment from each school joining the programme, because if a school drops‑out halfway through the programme their place can’t be offered to another school.

Services For Education recruits schools in the summer term in order to start the programme the following September. Information is sent out by email, post and during an online briefing session to eligible schools.

Autumn Term

With the help of a Services For Education Adviser you will:

• Ascertain starting points and record them
• Get children involved to review current practice
• Complete on‑line baseline surveys with pupils
• Complete a baseline audit of school practice
• Identify barriers and factors that hinder progress
• Develop ideas that will promote change
• Nominate a member of staff to attend the two funded training days
• Prepare an Action Plan that will structure and keep track of resources required, jobs, dates for completion and success criteria
• By the start of December submit your action plan to the steering group for approval. This will trigger the first part of the grant (£3,500 to be paid in two stages).

Spring Term

With the help of your Services For Education Adviser you will:

• Start to implement your Action Plan
• Engage the whole school community in progress and change
• Address all strands in a way to encourage engagement
• Collect evidence of impact (ongoing).

Summer term

With the help of your Services For Education Adviser you will:

• Continue with implementing your Action Plan Attend the celebration event in June to help share good ideas (compulsory)
• Take part in BBC Gardeners’ world wheelbarrow event (optional)
• Continue to engage the whole school community in progress and change
• Continue to address all strands in a way to encourage engagement
• Collect evidence of impact (ongoing).

Autumn term

With the help of your Services For Education Adviser you will:

• Continue with implementing your Action Plan
• Continue to engage the whole school community in progress and change
• Continue to address all strands in a way to encourage engagement
• Take part in the ‘Cookathon’ (optional)
• Collect evidence of impact (ongoing)
• Repeat the online surveys with pupils
• Repeat the school audit
• Collate evidence of impact.

Spring term

You will:

• Continue with sustainable activities in your Action Plan
• Attend the Awards ceremony.

During the Autumn and Spring term there are four courses to be attended by an appropriate member of staff from each school.

The objective is to make a measurable increase in the amount of regular physical activity of pupils in order to promote a healthy lifestyle.

• Activ…