November 25, 2022

On Thursday 24 November over 200 patners joined us at Energus in Workington as we launched a new programme to support older adults and particularly those with or at risk of long-term health conditions, to be more active.

Live Longer Better is a national programme led by former Chief Knowledge officer to the NHS Sir Muir Gray. The movement aims to enable people to live longer better, reduce the need for health and social care and reverse the effects of lockdown.

Active Cumbria, part of Cumbria County Council’s Public Health Team, is one of several Active Partnerships from across England involved in the Live Longer Better national programme.  

The face-to-face event, provided a platform for uniting sectors and partners across Cumbria who share the mission to improve the health and quality of life of older adults. This professional development and networking event was an opportunity to explore ageism, health inequalities and use physical activity as a vehicle for change.

Active Cumbria Senior Manager for Development, Bruce Lawson, said “The launch of the Live Longer Better in Cumbria programme is a significant step towards us achieving our vision whereby everyone in Cumbria is enjoying an active lifestyle.  We have a clear role to play in reducing health and wellbeing inequalities in our county and the Live Longer Better in Cumbria programme will enable us to directly support partners working with older adults and together provide opportunities for them to be more active.”

In support of the programme, a £250,000 dedicated funding source ‘The Reconditioning Fund’ will be available for partners working with older adults to apply to develop new and increased opportunities to be active.  The fund will particularly focus on activities which increase physical ability and movement, resilience and healthspan; reduce the risk of, and delay or prevent dementia; and prevent and minimise the effects of disease and multimorbidity including long COVID. 

Keynote speakers included Sir Muir Gray who joined the event virtually and Cumbria’s Director of Public Health, Colin Cox, who shared his vision for reducing health inequalities for older adults in Cumbria.

Sir Muir Gray said; “The elixir of life has been discovered not from a bottle but through words because we now have the knowledge to enable people to live better for longer. The diseases we fear most, dementia and frailty, can be prevented or delayed. People can improve their mental and physical ability, no matter their age nor how many diseases they may have, and this will reduce the need for health and social care. But this is not just about being active in isolation or having more done for them it is about older people doing even more for others, having purpose and a sense of achievement. We do not need a reorganisation we need a revolution.”

Cumbria’s Director of Public Health, Colin Cox said; “I’m delighted to be here today and support the launch for this exciting programme. As Cumbria’s older population continues to grow in numbers, it’s vital that initiatives such as Live Longer Better in Cumbria encourage our older adult communities to participate in more physical activity. The preventative benefits of activity are widely known, and this programme aligns with our aims of reducing health inequalities in Cumbria, enabling our older adults to enjoy a longer and healthier life.”  

To find out more about Live Longer Better in Cumbria and the Reconditioning Fund visit the dedicated section of our website here.