As schools across the UK begin breaking up for the summer holidays, children will no doubt be fantasising about six weeks of sleeping in, watching hours of TV and enjoying ice creams in the sunshine.
However, with research[1] showing that the holidays have a negative impact on children’s overall health – undoing the positive impact of the whole school year for kids fitness and BMI – Sainsbury’s is offering Active Kids Holiday Clubs as a fun way to keep children physically active and healthy over the summer holidays.
The study, which was conducted by Sainsbury’s partner, Premier Education and the ukactive Research Institute, monitored school children over a 13-month period and found that the number of overweight and obese children fell steadily between the start of the school year and breaking up for the Summer holidays.
However by the time children returned to school the next Autumn – following the summer holiday – the number of overweight and obese children had climbed to nearly a quarter (24%), and the average BMI of the whole group had increased from 17.64 to 18.26. What’s more, the children had suffered a loss in fitness levels of up to 80% over the summer holidays.
In fact, the short holiday period undid the positive impact of the whole school year: more children returned to school overweight or obese and less physically fit than they had been at the start of the previous academic year.
Further research suggests that the structure that school provides may go some way in explaining children’s improved health during the school year, and its decline during the holidays.
Over two thirds (69%) of UK primary schools offer two or more hours of PE in their timeable each week, with a third of UK primary schools (35%) offering some form of physical activity every day. At the same time, 64% of school children eat school meals, which are required to be balanced and healthy[2] .
Meanwhile Sainsbury’s research has found that children in the UK spend an average of 174 hours either watching TV or playing video games each over the summer break, with a third (34%) of children spending between three and four hours per day in front of their screens.
What’s more, outside of school, children’s meal are much less likely to be healthy. Research shows a high proportion of children aged between seven and 14 do not meet national recommended guidelines for healthy eating. Their diets have been found to be too high in saturated fats, salt and sugar and most still do not eat enough fruit and vegetables[3].
With less children having access to healthy meals or scheduled physical exercise, it is clear to see why the summer holiday are having a negative impact on their health.
The UK Government has declared that childhood obesity is one of the biggest health challenges this country faces[4], and statistics from The Government’s National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) for England[5] show that its prevalence is increasing across different age groups.
In 2017/18, 9.5% of children aged 4-5 years were found to be obese, while one in five (20.1%) of those in Year 6 were obese. Furthermore, the prevalence of obesity in both age groups rose from 2016/17.
It has also been found that obese children are more than twice as likely to die prematurely as they are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer and depression than their peers who are a healthy weight[6].
Therefore with substantial evidence pointing to the significant contribution that school summer holidays are having to children’s health, and as part of its commitment to helping its customers live well for less, Sainsbury’s has launched Active Kids Holiday Clubs.
Judith Batchelar, Director of Sainsbury’s Brand commented: “We know from speaking to parents that the summer holidays can be a difficult time to keep kids active and entertained without having to spend a fortune. Our Active Kids holiday clubs are designed to help by giving children the chance to try a variety of exciting new activities whilst meeting new friends and keeping their fitness levels up during the summer holidays. We hope children taking part in a club this summer continue to keep up with their new hobbies and head back to school with a spring in their step.”
Chair of ukactive, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson said: “ukactive is delighted to be supporting Sainsbury’s Active Kids Holidays Clubs across the forthcoming summer holidays. We recognise the huge challenges that children and families can face during this period, with just 17.5% of children and young people meeting the daily guidelines for physical activity. Sainsbury’s should be commended for its long-standing commitment towards getting children active and healthy, with these 70 camps supporting and enriching the lives of children and families across the country.”
The weekly summer camps have been designed as part of a trial to encourage children from 5-15 years to be more active and healthier during the summer holidays.
The clubs, run in partnership with ukactive and available in 70 locations across the UK, offer a wide range of activities. This includes sports such as gymnastics, tennis, cricket, dodgeball and football, as well as active play, dance and arts and crafts to ensure all children are keeping active in a way that is fun and entertaining.
What’s more, the clubs serve each child a healthy lunch and snacks which have been developed with the Children’s Food Trust’s guidelines in mind.
To book a space at Sainsbury’s Active Kids Holiday Clubs this summer, customers can sign up via: https://activekids.sainsburys.co.uk/
The holiday clubs, which are priced at just £7.50 per child per day, will be hosted by Premier Education, one of the leading holiday club providers in the UK. They will provide action-packed programmes that are delivered by fully accredited ukactive KIDS Code of Practice professionals and will be supported by trained and accredited young leaders from the local community.
[1] Mann S, Wade M, Jones M, et al (2018), ‘One-year surveillance of body mass index and cardiorespiratory fitness in UK primary school children in North West England and the impact of school deprivation level’
[2] Ofsted (2018), ‘Obesity, healthy eating and physical activity in primary schools’
[3] Pechey R et al. (2013), ‘Socioeconomic differences in purchases of more vs. less healthy foods and beverages: analysis of over 25,000 British households in 2010’, Social Science and Medicine, 92(100), 22–6
[4] UK Department of Health and Social Care (2019), ‘Government Response to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee report on Childhood obesity: Time for action, Eighth Report of Session 2017–19’
[5] NHS Digital (2018), ‘National Child Measurement Programme’
[6] House of Commos Health and Social Care Select Committee (2018), ‘Childhood obesity: Time for action, Eighth Report of Session 2017–19’