Move Together has now been running for over six months and is successfully supporting nearly 400 people whose health has been impacted by COVID-19 to move more and improve their health and wellbeing. We are pleased to be able to share key highlights from the six-month evaluation about the impact achieved by this incredible Oxfordshire pathway:

Move Together's impact after six months

Shepard and Moyes Ltd conducted the six-month evaluation of the pathway. The evaluation showed that the pathway is clearly reaching its intended audience and supporting those people that need help to move more. The target group for Move Together is broad and includes anyone whose physical or mental health has been impacted by Covid-19:

• 89% of participants stated that they had been impacted by Covid-19.
• 74% of participants are aged over 50.
• 15% were experiencing high levels of loneliness.
• Many of the participants on the pathway express how Covid-19 left them feeling lonely and lacking confidence.

What did the evaluation tell us?

The evaluation report highlighted that Move Together was reaching and supporting people with difficult complexities caused by Covid-19, such as mental health, loneliness, social isolation and worsening of health conditions.

One key barrier to being active cited by many participants was around confidence. This includes confidence around Covid-19, confidence associated with joining new groups and confidence in participant's own skills and mobility. The 121, personalised support offered by Move Together meant that residents started to feel more confident about leaving the house and becoming more active, as Maggie tells us here:

"I began to go out again and my daughters would come and just link arms with me to help me walk along, before I got my confidence back. Just to have somebody link arms with you is a really reassuring thing. Things moved on and I did get my confidence back. My balance is back pretty much to normal. I think Move Together is brilliant. Thank you very much to the Move Together team you've really helped me.

What's next for Move Together?

Move Together Coordinator Richard Claydon reflects on the last six months and next steps for the pathway:

We would like to thank our evaluators, Shepherd and Moyes, for the creation of the Move Together Interim Evaluation report. The report provides excellent learning for the development of Move Together and demonstrates the valuable behavioural support that is being provided for people across Oxfordshire to move more.

Move Together is specifically targeting people who were impacted by Covid-19 and need help and support to be more active. We are pleased that the report shows we are reaching the target audience and providing the much-needed support for residents across Oxfordshire. The person-centred approach of the pathway is evident throughout the report and this approach is key in helping to understand people's barriers to being active and then providing the motivation and signposting to activities and services that suit individual's needs.

Our focus is now on working with our partners to implement the recommendations detailed in the report, and we look forward to seeing the continued positive impact of the pathway for people's physical and mental health.

You can find out more about Move Together here.