AN innovative partnership project promoting physical activity in Mid Devon has secured an award of more than £300,000. West Devon Borough and Mid Devon District Councils worked together with the Mid Devon Primary Care Trust to devise and develop the initiative called 5X30. The project is so named because it supports the Government?s recommendation that everybody should participate in at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity five days a week. From next April, 5X30 will employ a community activator based in Okehampton, who will co-ordinate with employees in the other main population centres in the district to develop the 5X30 project and motivate people to increase their physical activity participation levels. The project will use existing community facilities such as village halls, open spaces, youth centres, churches and sheltered housing facilities to develop activities and programmes in villages and hamlets around its four towns (Okehampton, Crediton, Tiverton, Cullompton). Cllr Nick Morgan, chairman of the borough?s economic, leisure and community development committee, said: ?It?s particularly exciting that the northern rural area of West Devon will benefit from this project. ?As a whole, the borough is one of the most sparsely populated areas in the country, with a scattered population of just over 50,000 living in an area larger than Greater London. This means that some people may not always be able to easily access physical activity. But this project would be directly targeted at rural areas and would bring real health advantages too.? The bulk of the funding for the £350,000 project comes from Sport England and the Big Lottery Fund under its Active England programme, which provided £301,240. Contributions have also come from both councils, the Primary Care Trust, Mid Devon and West Devon Community Safety Partnerships, the Active Devon Sports Partnership, Mid Devon Zero-14+ and from town and parish councils. ?In kind? support has also been contributed from a variety of organisations. Jim Clarke, regional director Sport England South West, said: ?Thanks to lottery funding more people will enjoy the long-term benefits of sports and physical activities for their health and well being. National lottery players can take pride in the fact that they are contributing to the creation of more active communities.? Nationally the current participation rates at the 5X30 level are just 30% compared to 70% in countries such as Finland. 5X30 aims to increase moderate physical activity levels across the PCT area by 1% (1,030 persons) year on year. 5X30 adopts a broad ranging view of physical activity, which is better referred to as active living which includes dance, active play and everyday activities such as walking, gardening and cycling. A fundamental component of the 5X30 project will be the establishment of the 5X30 Rural Network. The network will enable a multitude of organisations and individuals who have an interest in promoting, encouraging and providing physical activity to come together to devise and implement physical activity opportunities. Any organisation interested in getting involved with the project should call Angela Gaskin at Mid Devon District Council on 01884 234276.
