Physical Activity and Health Pathway Review

Move Consulting support Active Oxfordshire to help more people, Move Together.

Active Oxfordshire, the Active Partnership for the county of Oxfordshire contacted Move Consulting after an internal secondment led to a need for more strategic support. The brief from the clients focused on supporting their work tackling inactivity and inequalities for people with disabilities, long term health conditions, poor mental health and older people. 

The Active Partnership had recently been commissioned to coordinate the planning and delivery of a new physical activity pathway (Move Together) in collaboration with the district councils and reached out to the team at Move for strategic support.

“Move Consulting came highly recommended, and they had a proven track record in being able to provide an extensive understanding of the health sector along with vast experience of delivering successful physical activity pathways and exercise referral schemes. 

Richard Claydon | Strategic Health Relationship Manager | Active Oxfordshire 

OUR APPROACH

Move Consulting undertook a range of activities for Active Oxfordshire with the aim of strengthening the delivery of the Move Together Pathway as well as providing consultancy support to the Strategic Health Relationship Manager throughout. 

A physical activity pathway review

The team at Move Consulting undertook a review of the physical activity pathway. This involved a phase of information gathering and analysis to understand the work carried out to date by the Active Partnership and network stakeholders. This included reviewing learnings identified within previous evaluations from the early stages of the Move Together Pathway being delivered, highlighting key pieces of information to support potential fund raising with commissioners.

Move Consulting then supported Active Oxfordshire through a series of focused meetings to interrogate the design elements of the physical activity system pathway. This process helped them to clarify the delivery model for Move Together and allowed them to provide recommendations for continued innovation to improve outcomes. For example, refinement of system processes and actions.

Building a business case

Work was then undertaken between the team at Move, Active Oxfordshire and wider system partners contributing to elements of co-design, to create an evaluation framework and subsequent business case for the Move Together Pathway.

This was designed to present a compelling case to clinical commissioning bodies on the continued success, and future potential for the pathway including;

· the benefits of physical activity on health and wellbeing.

· how the longevity of the Move Together Pathway could impact on the local population.

· the potential impact on cost savings to local health and social care services.  

The business case was supplemented with high quality presentations and marketing assets, including a Research Summary and Findings Infographic to strengthen their ability to highlight the successes of the Move Together Pathway and support securing further funding.

Richard added, 

“Elaine and Craig provided the tools and advice to build an effective evaluation framework that demonstrated the impact of the pathway and created a business case proposal that ultimately helped to secure extension funding for a further 9-months. 

In addition, we have built extremely valuable strategic relationships across the county that have led to positive systems change around physical activity and consequently meant we are now well positioned to continue delivery of Move Together through long-term funding.”

Developing skills and confidence 

Throughout the time that the team were supporting Active Oxfordshire with the continued development of the Move Together Pathway, company Directors Elaine McNish and Craig Blain also provided mentoring support to the Strategic Health Partnerships Manager, helping to develop his skills and confidence to build further capacity into the capabilities at Active Oxfordshire. 

WHAT THIS MEANT FOR OUR CLIENT

“Move Consulting’s work led to numerous positive outcomes and contributed to the delivery of an effective physical activity pathway with excellent health outcomes. This support included the creation of a business case to secure long-term funding and building strategic relationships with stakeholders in the health sector. 

Thanks to the support provided on these priorities, we know have an effective business case that demonstrates a collaborative commissioning approach with health partners and strong evidence for sustaining the pathway. Extension funding has already been achieved, we have great relationships across health & social care and now have the tools to continue our conversations with commissioners for secure long-term funding.

The strategic support we required was across a variety of areas, and the skills and knowledge that both Elaine and Craig possess made them an easy choice to fulfil this work. We were also provided with many positive recommendations about the personal and professional service that they provide, allowing us to continue the momentum and quality of our work moving forward. 

Working with Move Consulting met all our expectations and more…! Not only are both Elaine and Craig a pleasure to work with, but they have a vast amount of knowledge, skills and expertise that provided excellent value for our work at Active Oxfordshire. The combination of their extensive experience and professional, friendly service was a real asset, and it was brilliant to work with people that share our passion for the role that physical activity can play.”