Healthy Halifax

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Project Lead: Professor Annie Topping 

Collaborators: Alison Bareham, Fiona Wondergem, Dr Phyl Fletcher-Cook, Dr Serena McCluskey, Dr John Stephenson and Harriet Swift

Date: 2010-2012

In 2008, the UK Department of Health funded a series of ‘Healthy Towns’ initiatives aimed at improving health in the most deprived areas across England. Halifax was one of the towns selected to advocate a whole town approach to promote physical activity and healthy eating, under the Change4Life campaign.

The Healthy Halifax initiative sought to create a healthy town through “regeneration, inclusion and fun”. The initiative funded 10 separate project streams each with smaller embedded projects or activities. These 10 overarching projects can be categorised as initiatives to improve food systems, active travel or planning for health and public engagement, including grant giving. The projects were awarded to charities, social housing organisations, local interest groups, the local authority and the local NHS.

An important aspect of the Healthy Towns initiative is learning about what the health and lifestyle needs of the local population are and what projects work. Researchers in the Centre were commissioned by NHS Calderdale and Calderdale Council to undertake a lifestyle survey of the local population, along with an evaluation of the 10 Healthy Halifax projects. Results from the lifestyle survey are available online.