About 
We want to work together to find the levers to enable more movement for everyone. To embed movement in everything we do, in every decision we make, no matter how big or small.Our Physical Activity Strategy
‘Our Dorset – A Movement for Movement’ is the physical activity strategy for BCP and Dorset. It sets out why we need to make change, what we need to focus on, and how we can do it. Our aim is to support everyone to move a little more every day, in ways that work for them while tailoring that support towards those who can benefit most from moving more.
Moving more isn’t the goal in itself; it will play its part in improving wellbeing for all of us living in Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole and Dorset. To achieve this we will need to work as a system to build a narrative around movement that inspires and empowers everyone to move a little more and sit a little less.
‘A Movement for Movement’ presents a direction of travel for our shared approach in Dorset.
It recognises that no single organisation holds all the answers or can take all the action needed to tackle inactivity. We are all actors in the system that shapes how much we move and we can all make change, in our lives, the lives of our families and friends and our communities.
This is our call to action. To work together to find the levers to enable more movement for everyone. To embed movement in everything we do, in every decision we make, no matter how big or small.
While not moving enough (inactivity) poses risks for all of us, both as individuals and as a society, becoming more active (moving more) offers real opportunities.
Regularly moving our bodies in whatever way works for us can significantly reduce the risk we face of developing a number of health conditions.
In Dorset, our Councils, NHS, public services and voluntary and community groups have come together to work as an integrated health and care system (ICS). The ICS aims to remove traditional barriers between services so people can access the support and care that they need when they need it.
An important part of this is supporting people and communities to lead healthy, thriving lives and addressing health inequalities. Meeting this challenge will require change from all these partners and supporting people across Dorset to move more is an opportunity for us all as organisations, communities and individuals.
A whole systems approach
Whole systems work is integral to the strategy, which recognises that physical activity levels are affected by a complex system of influences and no single organisation or programme can create sustainable change at scale. Many aspects of modern life make it harder to live a healthy and active life: convenience food, sedentary jobs with long hours, the types of transport on offer and even the entertainment that is most easily accessible are all designed to keep us sitting down.
With such a complex problem we must address the policy, environmental, social and individual factors that encourage or prevent active lives. This may sound fairly straightforward but in reality it relies on everyone making it their mission to get others moving: employers, school and hospital staff, town planners, GP practices and community centres can all influence how much people move everyday.
Our Strategic Partners
We are asking all our ICS partners and any organisations working in Dorset and BCP to sign up as a partner, pledging their commitment to help us create a Movement for Movement across the county.
The strategy seeks to empower individuals and organisations to take action, providing a framework for our collective approach whilst allowing organisations to decide how they can make change.
Resources
Help to share and support our Physical Activity Strategy we have created a set of resources for use when producing content and social media posts.