Essex County Council has appointed Sport for Confidence CIC to deliver a physical activity model to support adults living with physical disabilities, learning disabilities and long-term health conditions.

The new programme, Reconnect, uses Sport for Confidence’s place-based model of early help and prevention to embed integrated physical activity pathways across Essex. Based on learnings from a two-year, overwhelmingly positive pilot, it is guaranteed funding for three years, with the option to extend for two more.

Physical activity interventions that can build and maintain physical, mental and emotional wellbeing will be offered in community settings across Essex. Sport for Confidence’s occupational therapists and coaching workforce, who are dual-trained in mental health and physical disability, will be working with a multitude of community partners including leisure centre operators, care homes, community nursing teams and charities.

The intervention marks a significant move by Essex County Council to support community-driven health interventions that tackle health inequalities and create person-centred physical activity opportunities to those who traditionally find it difficult to access services and fall behind the rest of the population in terms of activity levels.

The provision of community-based services that prevent, delay and reduce the need for clinical services will alleviate pressure on the NHS and aligns with the government’s NHS Reform Plan, moving care from hospitals to communities, with a focus on prevention. With physical activity at the heart of the solution, this is a model which could be replicated across other counties.

Lyndsey Barrett, founder of Sport for Confidence and lead occupational therapist, says this is a huge step change in preventative health delivery: “While Sport For Confidence has had a long-standing positive relationship with Essex County Council, this is the first time the council has procured a service of this nature, positioning occupational therapists as innovators and using physical activity for individual and social transformation, able to work across sport, health and social care with a key role in the prevention agenda.

“For many years, Sport for Confidence has been pioneering and evidencing the therapeutic benefits of sport and physical activity, especially for those who have the potential to gain most from being active but who struggle to access meaningful opportunities. Our approach enables a much earlier intervention, focused on prevention and support, while also alleviating the pressure on the more traditional clinical pathway to services.”

The evidence from the pilot study was independently compiled and verified by the University of Essex and confirmed that embedding physical activity into a whole system approach to adult health and social care could deliver £58.72 of social value per £1 invested.

Councillor John Spence, cabinet member for health, social care and integration, says: “The benefits from being physically active are well documented. Our successful trial programme has now demonstrated the major role physical activity can play in increasing the confidence and independence of people living with a disability or long-term health condition.

“The introduction of Reconnect is genuinely pioneering work, building on previous programmes and supporting residents’ health and wellbeing. By enabling people to live more independently, and therefore have less need for health and care services, this is a real win-win for Essex.”

Jeanette Bain-Burnett, executive director of policy and integrity at Sport England, says the Reconnect programme is aligned with its 10-year Uniting the Movement strategy, creating a fully integrated physical activity pathway which supports good health, while preventing ill health in targeting those who traditionally struggle to get physically active.