We focus on four complex health issues more prevalent in urban areas
With the Social Progress Imperative, we've developed the first neighbourhood level, health-focused social progress index of its kind.
With Wellcome Trust
We want to hear from you.
Children's health and food
Share
Positively changing home environments can be difficult. Carole Coulon, Portfolio Manager for children's health and food, shares the current work we're doing improving children's health in homes and early years settings.
Our children’s health and food programme aims to improve children’s health in urban areas. Through our programme’s ‘home’ strand, we’re working to change the environments where children take their first steps into the world of food and physical activity.
Our ethnographic research show that homes and early years settings have a long-lasting impact on a child’s health. From the availability of cooking equipment to spaces for play; these environments help children to access nutritious food options and develop healthy eating habits.
The evidence is clear on the factors that influence children’s weight in the home and early years settings. However there is limited evidence on what works to tackle childhood obesity.
Homes are private spaces, making it challenging to influence these environments at scale. Meanwhile, food standards are not consistently applied across all early years settings.
The evidence base suggests that the places that we spend our time have a significant impact on our food and activity choices. We know that nurseries can provide children with up to three meals each weekday. These can have a significant impact on children’s overall consumption. At their best, they can make the healthier option the default option.
While the evidence is clear on the factors that influence children’s weight in the home and early years settings. There is limited evidence on what works to tackle childhood obesity in those environments. For example, we know that breastfeeding is linked to lower rates of childhood obesity, but we haven’t seen initiatives make large-scale improvements in breastfeeding rates. A lot of conversations about early years are framed around health interventions, like work led by midwives and health visitors. But these services are already stretched. We’re interested in what initiatives will complement and support statutory activity.
“ A lot of conversations about early years are framed around statutory sector health interventions. But these services are already stretched. We’re interested in what initiatives will complement and support statutory activity. Carole Coulon Portfolio Manager for children's health and food
A lot of conversations about early years are framed around statutory sector health interventions. But these services are already stretched. We’re interested in what initiatives will complement and support statutory activity.
That’s why we look to work with a range of organisations – including social enterprises, statutory services, housing providers, children’s centres, nurseries and community groups. With these organisations, we can test new products and services that support families to access healthier food options and chances to be active. By trialling projects in our local area, we plan to build and share an evidence base for how to create healthy home environments.
We are testing projects in three key areas:
Over the next 12 months, we want to explore other projects under these three key areas. If you have an idea for a project that will help families to access healthy food options for their home, embed healthy practices in nurseries and support breastfeeding and infant weaning, please get in touch.
A FrameWorks strategic report
We're investing £900,000 to make healthy food and physical activity more accessible to children, with the aim of developing a model that can be replicated.
How the environment influences what families eat
We're investing £1.2m to help children in neighbouring wards achieve and maintain a healthy weight.