Around 100 people recently attended the Change4Life South Tyneside Public Health Awards event held at Jarrow Community Centre, which celebrated the hard work and dedication of those who are committed to raising health awareness in their own settings.
Over 20 local schools and children’s centres were presented with the Healthy Schools Award which celebrates best practice for the health and wellbeing of students. A number of school staff and pupils were awarded the Healthy Schools Star Award for their innovative work in raising the profile of health issues. Local businesses and the voluntary sector including Age UK, Autism Able, Bright Futures, Escape Interventions, First Contact Clinical, Mental Health Concern and Women’s Health In South Tyneside (WHIST) achieved the Change4Life Quality Mark, a new award which recognises the achievements of local services, as well as Talbot Road Medical Centre which was awarded the Young Persons Quality Mark for the work it does in helping teenagers access treatment and support. Local businesses were also presented with the
North East Better Health at Work Award (BHAWA) for their commitment to improving workforce health.
Cllr Joan Atkinson, South Tyneside Council’s Lead Member for Children, Young People and Families, thanked the schools and early education settings for their commitment to pupil and employee welfare.
“The awards are testament to the huge amounts of work going on across the Borough in order to support whole school approaches to promoting health and wellbeing,” she said.
“Healthy Schools is a programme which celebrates best practice for the health and wellbeing of students. I’m pleased to say we currently have 48 schools in date with their Healthy Schools accreditation and 100 per cent of our schools engage with the programme.”
Cllr Tracey Dixon, Lead Member for Health and Independence praised local businesses who have achieved the BHAWA. She said: “I am very pleased to present this award to various local organisations across the Borough that are committed to improving the health and wellbeing of their staff by signing up to support public health campaigns. The companies who have been presented with the award have shown a real desire to ensure their employees work in a healthy environment. Last year the companies that achieved the award saw around 2 days reduction in sickness absence which works out to a saving of around £600 so this is a fantastic achievement to the companies in South Tyneside.”
Some of the businesses who were presented with the awards include:
South Tyneside NHS Clinical Commissioning Group
South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust
Ford Aerospace Ltd
Bliss=ability
BT South Shields
Cllr Nancy Maxwell, Lead Member for Voluntary Sector Partnerships and Cooperatives praised the local voluntary sector for its continued efforts in raising awareness of health issues.
She said: “Many of our voluntary sector organisations have been awarded the Quality Mark for their work in helping to improve the quality and building local capacity to deliver health messages and interventions to those who access services.
“Our thriving voluntary sector in South Tyneside continually demonstrates that they are key partners in improving the health and wellbeing of our residents and I’m very proud to present them with this well-deserved quality mark.”
Rob Braines who has been a public health volunteers for over eight years was also recognised for his commitment to holding regular health and wellbeing events and drop-ins across South Tyneside. Rob was praised for his contribution to the Change4Life South Tyneside programme which offers help and support for people looking to lead healthier lifestyles through quit smoking, cutting down on alcohol or finding out about healthy eating tips.
For further information about Change4Life South Tyneside or the awards go to www.change4lifesouthtyneside.co.uk or telephone (0191) 424 7300 you can also keep up to date with healthy tips on facebook @C4LSouthTyneside and twitter @Change4LifeST
