Age UK's Sports Seminar, Fit as a fiddle a lasting legacy Jackie Hayhoe, 5th December, presentations

1. Fit as a Fiddle - a Lasting Legacy
Jackie Hayhoe
fit as a fiddle Portfolio Manager

2. Why is Fit as a Fiddle
Needed
The older you are the less you participate.
(A vision for 2020, Sport England 2004)
Among people older than 65, 12% cannot manage
walking outside on their own and 9% cannot manage
the stairs unaided.
25% of women and 7 % of men do not have sufficient
leg strength to get out of a chair without using their
arms.
20% of women and 14% of men over 50 do not have
the flexibility to wash their hair comfortably.
(Skelton et al 1998)

3. What is Fit as a Fiddle
A Holistic Approach to
Improving the Health and
Well Being of Older People

4. About Fit as a Fiddle
• £15.1m funding from Big Lottery over 5 years
• 24 different projects delivered across the England by over
500 organisations
• 2 national programmes
• Award winning programme
• Recognition from the European Commission and World
Health Organisation
• Externally evaluated and validated

5. 241,661 older people
taking part in physical
activity

9. 208,497 older people
eating more healthily

11. Recruited and worked with
4500 volunteers

13. Interim Evaluation Findings
• 21% of fit as a fiddle participants have “not good” health
• 42% of fit as a fiddle participants have a limiting longstanding
illness
• 76% of fit as a fiddle participants were women
•25% of fit as a fiddle participants are aged over 80
• 71.2 average age for men
• 70.5 average age for women
• 83.8% of fit as a fiddle participants were white British, but
higher than average attendances with
• 4.3% Asian or Asian British: Indian
• 2.53% Asian or Asian British: Pakistani
Source Ecorys Interim Evaluation Report, October 2011

14. The impacts…..
• 33% increase in the amount of walking reported between the
start of fit as a fiddle and 3 months afterwards
• An average increase per person from 60 minutes of physical
activity per week, to 77.5 minutes per week
• An increase in strength and balance exercise with a median of
70 minutes per week, rising to 92.5 minutes per week at the end
of fit as a fiddle and then rising again to 120 minutes. A 71%
increase from baseline.
•13% increase in the amount of fruit and vegetables eaten, rising
from 4 to 4.5
• Increased levels of independence and opportunities for
social inclusion leading to reduced isolation

15. The real impacts……
“After suffering from ME for 25 years I am now experiencing a big
improvement in my health”
“I couldn’t even get out of the bath….so I stopped having baths.
Since I’ve been coming I can now do that”
“I feel much more confident that I’m not going to fall”
“I found within the first 6 weeks, my doctor was saying what are
you doing?”
“I can now brush my hair”

16. THANK YOU
Any Questions
Jackie Hayhoe
jackie.hayhoe@ageuk.org.uk