*Updated* European Healthy Stadia Programme

Concept

Millions of people across Europe attend sporting stadia each week to watch their team, to work at the stadium or to use the stadium’s facilities. Stadia offer significant opportunities for reaching large numbers of people, and as such, offer a key setting for addressing public health, social and environmental issues.

Sporting stadia are therefore well positioned to develop community health initiatives, addressing determinants such as nutrition, physical activity, tobacco and alcohol consumption.

Background to Healthy Stadia

The European Healthy Stadia Programme, which is part-funded by the European Union through the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers, aims to support sports stadia across Europe to promote initiatives concerning public health, social and environmental issues.

The Healthy Stadia programme builds upon work already undertaken by Heart of Mersey to help support local stadia across Greater Merseyside develop as health promoting settings. The work undertaken in Merseyside emphasised that stadia are in a powerful position to develop health initiatives, and many of the resulting examples of best practice, and lessons learned through partnerships with stadia, have now been extended and applied to a European context.

Aims of the European Programme

Broad aims of the programme include:

 Demonstrating the impact stadia have on local communities and harnessing that potential

 Supporting stadia in adopting a healthy settings approach, as previously adopted in schools, hospitals, workplaces, cities etc.

 Supporting stadia to promote healthier practices (lifestyle, social and environmental) and increasing their recognition of corporate and social responsibilities towards staff, customers and local communities

 Providing a multi stakeholder, settings approach, to address health and social determinants at a European level

 Developing a European Healthy Stadia network to bring together a wide range of sports clubs and stadia, to share experiences, and to learn from initiatives developed to promote healthy lifestyles

 Using the high profile nature of sports clubs and stadia brands to reach large European audiences and promote global messages concerning sustainability, health promotion, environmental practice and community engagement.

Key Developments to date

Initial attention for the Project focused upon: establishing a strong partnership of European agencies; agreeing roles and responsibilities for delivering key activities; and, engaging with local stadia to trial healthy initiatives.

As the programme develops further, there are now a number of key work packages underway. These include:

 Completion of an audit of current practice with over 90 European sports stadia

 Development of a Healthy Stadia website (published Feb 2009)

 Implementation of a Programme evaluation process (ongoing)

 Development and piloting of a European Healthy Stadia ‘toolkit’ of adopting best practice (now conducting 2nd stage pilot site visits)

 Planning and promotion of a European Healthy Stadia Conference (Liverpool, September 21st 2009)

 Launch of a European Network of Healthy Stadia at the Conference to extend the initial work and partnerships from the Programme past 2009.

The findings from the Programmes’ audit of current practice are now supporting the development and piloting of a best practice ‘toolkit’ intended to support stadia in the planning, roll out and coordination of healthy initiatives. Examples of initiatives representing best practice are being piloted in four European countries - Latvia, Ireland, Spain and Finland - and will be published as part of the toolkit in 2009.

Monitoring and evaluation continues to run throughout the project, ensuring that the impact and outcomes expected of the Programme are identified.

European Healthy Stadia Conference

The European Healthy Stadia Conference took place in Liverpool on September 21st 2009.

Over 250 delegates from 18 countries arrived in Liverpool to take part in presentations and workshops on the emerging role sports stadia can play in improving the health of fans and the local communities surrounding clubs and stadia. The conference showed that sports stadia are in a powerful position to develop health initiatives influencing increased exercise, smoking cessation, healthier eating and men’s health issues, working jointly with stakeholders such as health services, regeneration agencies, transport authorities, food and drink suppliers and fan groups.

Delegates were addressed by representatives from key national and international sports stadia and sporting organisations, including Liverpool FC, Lord’s Cricket Ground, Olympic Sports Centre Riga, FC Sevilla, London 2012 Olympic Games and UEFA. The conference was also attended by ministerial delegations from Ireland, Italy and Poland, the latter of which presented latest information on sports-based public health initiatives in the build up to UEFA’s EURO Championships co-hosted by Poland in 2012.

The conference presentations are now available for viewing online, and can be viewed through the following link: http://www.healthystadia.eu/toolkit/conference2009/

There is also an online gallery of photos taken during the day at www.healthystadia.andywhiteheadgallery.co.uk

For more information

Heart of Mersey

Healthy Stadia Conference Press Release

Healthy Stadia Conference