Healthy Exercise and Nutrition for the Really Young
HENRY [1] is an award-winning early years obesity-prevention scheme in the UK. The evidence-based intervention works with over 60 local partners, including health trusts, local authorities, public-health departments, voluntary organisations and universities, to help the whole family make positive changes to their lifestyle and build healthier communities. The HENRY Parent Champions programme, for example, is a way in which HENRY supports local communities to promote healthier lifestyles and counter the local obesogenic environment. HENRY Parent Champions are ‘graduates’ of HENRY group programmes trained as volunteers. They offer peer support and community activities and initiatives to help families adopt and sustain healthier and more active lifestyles. They also help engage families who have not joined a HENRY group in community-level activities to promote a healthy start. This project is currently implemented in many parts of the UK and beyond. It is funded by the Big Lottery [2].