Increasing Healthy Eating and Physical Exercise

• Improving health and wellbeing for disadvantaged young people through healthy eating, physical exercise activities and engagement in health and wellbeing-focused community events.

Increasing healthy eating and physical exercise project is a partnership between Live Well Tasmania, Wynyard High School and Waratah-Wynyard Council, that aims to improve healthy eating and physical activity for disadvantaged school students in the Waratah-Wynyard Council area.

Two hundred and thirty-six young people, their families and the broader community participated in the program, supported by 20 partners and local businesses.

A breakfast club was run five mornings a week for 40 weeks at Wynyard High School and physical activities were targeted to the families and youth that do not participate in regular team/club sports.

Students from the primary and high schools were also encouraged to get involved in many of the community events held throughout the year.

Students assisted in creating posters and advertising for many of the Wynyard 2018 Year of Wellbeing community events – creating menus and recipes and then cooking and preparing the food, running the raffle at one of the events and performing musical acts for the crowd.

These monthly community events built strong community connections, including a local long table lunch for 70 people supported by local producers and community participation with local high school students waiting the table.

Volunteers and strong community passion have driven this successful program, increasing local food accessibility and affordability, sharing local food through produce boxes, and assisting people who have low levels of health literacy to increase understanding and experience of eating healthy food – including growing and preparing.

Other activities have included education sessions on food security and preserving (drying, smoking and fermenting) and events providing healthy food ‘taster’ sessions and active transport options.

Links:

• Wynyard community Newsletter April 2018 (Live Well Tasmania News)
• Long table lunch about healthy living (21 March 2018)
• Long Table Lunch Thank You! (1 April 2018)
• Produce Innovation Workshop (10 April 2018)
• State of Public Health 2018 (includes Grant stories)

image: Increasing Healthy Eating and Physical Exercise: Wynyard Local Long Table Lunch.