Final Conference of the ASPIRE Project

Institut Lillois d’Ingénierie de la Santé 42 Rue Ambroise Paré 59120 Loos France
Thursday 2nd March 2023 – 09:00 to 18:00

ASPIRE is achieving some fantastic results and has some great success stories to tell, which will be presented on Thursday 2^nd March.  We also have three fantastic guest speakers who are experts within their field and there will be the opportunity to network and hear from those who are delivering on the ground.

Join the ASPIRE Final Conference to hear about the incredible success stories of the project, along with talks from guest speakers including Professor Louisa Ells, Co-lead of the Obesity Institute Research and a Specialist Academic Advisor to Public Health England; Stephen Bevan, Head of HR Research Development at the Institute for Employment Studies and Jesper Dahl, Founder and Clinical Director of Southcote Proactive Healthcare and the Wellbeing Age® tool.

Registration is free and full itinerary:  http://www.bit.ly/ASPIREconference

THE CHALLENGE: OBESITY AND UNEMPLOYMENT

Obesity across the FCE (France Channel England) area is a significant concern; high levels of obesity coincide with high rates of unemployment across the zone. A Gallup poll shows that the longer a person is unemployed, the higher the rates of obesity, with rates reaching up to 32.7% after a year or more of unemployment.

ASPIRE will give obese/overweight and/or unemployed people the tools they need to make healthier lifestyle choices and improve their employability. Current health and employment services rarely work together to tackle the issues as one problem, despite the evidence that they are linked.

Current services also have difficulties in reaching the target audience due to the remoteness of much of the non-urban target population. Public Health England data shows a correlation between the fact that most services are delivered in town centre locations (lower obesity rates) and rural populations are disadvantaged (higher obesity rates) as access to services is harder.

THE PROGRAMME

A new FCE model, co-created using partner expertise in both fields, will holistically combine the necessary support to increase employability with access to local healthy food produce and consequent weight loss. The model will be implemented via 7 implementation sites and innovative technology in order to enable participants to improve their relationship with food and provide them with the skills and support they need to gain access to the labour market.

ASPIRE combines health, wellbeing and up-skilling opportunities in one holistic programme that is open to participants who are both struggling to manage their weight, or their health in general, and to improve their employability. Nine hub sites across the UK and France have been implementing the ASPIRE model, with evaluation being undertaken by Bournemouth University.

ASPIRE – PROJECT PARTNERS

• Wellbeing People Ltd
• Kent County Council
• Kent Community Healthcare Foundation Trust
• The Health and Europe Centre
• Mission Locale Picardie Maritime
• Maison pour l’Entreprise, l’Emploi et la Formation Santerre Haute Somme
• Centre Social Audrey Bartier

• C3 Collaborating for Health
• Bournemouth University
• Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council
• Anges Gardins
• Vivons en Forme (Association FLVS)
• Medway Community Healthcare
• Dover District Council
• Your Leisure