Creating and supporting a “Global Active City” Movement
The Physical Activity Exchange (PAEx) has completed surveillance, intervention and evaluation research related to physical activity for over 25 years.
This has been translated into a Global Active City (GAC) movement with international reach, resulting in increased physical activity levels in participating cities.
The research has also brought about project certification standards and improvements in knowledge, policy and programmes within pilot project cities (5.8 million residents). The academic leads for this research are: Professor Lynne Boddy, Professor Zoe Knowles, Professor Keith George, Dr Lawrence Foweather, Dr Lee Graves, Dr Paula Watson, Professor Stuart Fairclough and Professor Gareth Stratton.
Impact on the Liverpool City Region
The Global Active City movement has led to significant reductions in inactivity in participating cities; in Liverpool inactivity has been reduced from 27.4% in 2015 to 23.5% in 2018. This has resulted in improved health, fitness and wellbeing of residents, reduced pressure on health services and a positive associated impact on the economy.
Novel data from the long-term health surveillance research identified areas of inequality among more than 65,000 schoolchildren in Liverpool and shaped future policy decisions and allocation of resources.
Liverpool City Council reported that the city is now “viewed as an exemplar for cities across the globe” after becoming a certified GAC in 2018.