Bid to make Haverhill healthier shows good progress
Friday, 12th March 2010.
Efforts to improve Haverhill people's life expectancy are already well under way in an initiative aimed at cutting the town's very high rates of obesity and smoking.
Caroline Tomes from NHS Suffolk told Haverhill Partnership yesterday about the Healthy Haverhill initiative which is tackling health improvement in the town across a wide range of areas.
Haverhill shows up as a pocket of high levels of obesity and of smoking within Suffolk, and life expectancy in the town is currently four years shorter than in Bury St Edmunds and 11 years shorter than in affluent east Suffolk.
Numerous agencies delivering services within Haverhill met up and identified a series of priority areas - breastfeeding, men's health and exploring links with other partner agencies.
Caroline said there was a need for more breastfeeding-friendly venues in the town. A breastfeeding audit of the town centre is to be carried out and a Haverhill directory of breastfeeding venues put together.
A well man clinic organised by the Haverhill Association of Voluntary Organisations (HAVO) at the Darzi clinic had proved veryu popular and identified a big demand, so it was now regularly available.
The Cangle Foyer had joined in the initiative and was tackling obesity through breakfast and lunch clubs cevoted to healthy eating, had founded a football team and was looking at healthy eating cookery clubs.
It was combining fun with fitness and health with life-coaching.
The Healthy Haverhill initiative is now being tied in with another one called Healthy Ambition Suffolk, which aims to make Suffolk the healthiest county in the country.
Caroline Tomes from NHS Suffolk told Haverhill Partnership yesterday about the Healthy Haverhill initiative which is tackling health improvement in the town across a wide range of areas.
Haverhill shows up as a pocket of high levels of obesity and of smoking within Suffolk, and life expectancy in the town is currently four years shorter than in Bury St Edmunds and 11 years shorter than in affluent east Suffolk.
Numerous agencies delivering services within Haverhill met up and identified a series of priority areas - breastfeeding, men's health and exploring links with other partner agencies.
Caroline said there was a need for more breastfeeding-friendly venues in the town. A breastfeeding audit of the town centre is to be carried out and a Haverhill directory of breastfeeding venues put together.
A well man clinic organised by the Haverhill Association of Voluntary Organisations (HAVO) at the Darzi clinic had proved veryu popular and identified a big demand, so it was now regularly available.
The Cangle Foyer had joined in the initiative and was tackling obesity through breakfast and lunch clubs cevoted to healthy eating, had founded a football team and was looking at healthy eating cookery clubs.
It was combining fun with fitness and health with life-coaching.
The Healthy Haverhill initiative is now being tied in with another one called Healthy Ambition Suffolk, which aims to make Suffolk the healthiest county in the country.
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