Rise partners with Sport England to get more people active in Newcastle  

• 27 new places across England announced to tackle inequalities in activity levels  
• Newcastle set to benefit, as well as Sunderland and County Durham 
• Each new place is in the top 20% of the country for inactivity, social need, deprivation and health inequality  

Newcastle is among the 27 places set to benefit from a share of Sport England’s £250 million investment into the heart of communities across England, designed to tackle inactivity and inequalities by making sport, physical activity and movement accessible for everyone.   Rise will also support partners to deliver similar work in Sunderland and County Durham. 

Tackling stubborn inequalities

Sport England research calculates that active lifestyles save £8 billion a year for the healthcare system through illness prevention. This relieves some of the NHS burden, preventing more than 3.3 million cases of chronic health conditions a year – including 1.3m cases of depression, 900,000 cases of back pain and 700,000 cases of type 2 diabetes. 

Less than half of children are meeting the Chief Medical Officers’ guidelines for daily physical activity and women, people from lower socio-economic groups and Black and Asian people are still less likely to be active than other adults.  

To tackle these stubborn inequalities and break down barriers to a more active life, Sport England is taking a ‘Place-based approach’ – partnering with local organisations and leaders who understand both the specific needs of their communities and the local assets that are available – to support people to play sport and get active.  

• Data from the most recent Active Lives survey shows that 25.7% of adults in Newcastle are inactive, with many in Newcastle having physical inactivity levels above 30% for adults.  
  
  
• Alongside the adult data, 38.9% of children are classed as less active. 
  
  
• Healthy life expectancy for males and females is three years lower than the England average at 58.6 and 59.5 years, respectively.  
  
  
• 67% of adults (3% higher than the England average) and 41.4% of children (Year 6) are classed as overweight or obese, predicting future pressures and poor health outcomes. 

Building on foundations

The funding will build on previous work in Newcastle around the Core Cities programme, Sector Led Improvement work and This Girl Can, as well as aligning with ongoing work such as Playzones, the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) funded Trailblazer Neighbourhood (Walker), Destination Parks, and supporting the newly developed Physical Activity Strategy for the city.

Jade Scott, Strategic Lead for Place at Rise, said: 

“Unfortunately, data shows that people in Newcastle are less active, less healthy and die earlier than people in other parts of the country. Movement and physical activity can play a big part in fixing that, improving lives and communities, and boosting the economy. Local communities know what they need to thrive and this funding gives them a voice and puts them in control of their future. It builds on the great work going on in the city and across the region.”  

Lisa Dodd-Mayne, Sport England’s Executive Director for Place, said: 

“We want everyone, no matter where they live or who they are, to have the chance to be active and healthy. To do this, we’re focusing on places, towns, cities, and communities, where people face the biggest challenges. We are proud to announce a further 27 new Sport England place partnerships, in every corner of the country, bringing the total number of places we are working with to more than 90. We are committed to working with local partners and communities to break down the barriers to physical activity so that everyone has equal access to a more active life. We are excited to see what we can achieve together in Newcastle.”  

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