The 3rd Annual Conference

The Feel Good Factor

Physical Activity and Mental Health

Event Report

Introduction

The Department of Health sponsored the “Feel Good Factor” event which focused on the ways in which physical activity contributes to improving mental health and well being in communities and individuals. The event highlighted how we can improve professional practice in the planning and delivering of physical activity interventions and initiatives to create positive mental health and well being and prevent and treat mental ill health.

Over 100 delegates were present on the day representing a wide range of sectors including health, local authorities, PCT’S, national governing bodies plus deliverers and practitioners in mental health sectors as well as service users.

The programme of the day

9.00 / Registration and Refreshments
9.45 / Welcome- Bob Laventure
Chair of PAN-WM
9.50 / An introduction to the Feel Good Factor Conference: An overview of the National Mental Health & Well Being Agenda - Dr Neil Deuchar, Medical Director of Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust
10.00 / Inequalities in mental health and well being and how to effectively engage with key groups – Dr Lynne Friedli, Mental Health Promotion Specialist
10.45 / The Feel Good Factor: Physical Activity and Mental health: The Evidence & effectiveness of using physical activity for positive mental health - Professor Ken Fox
Department of Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences, BristolUniversity
11.15 / Mid Morning Break
11.35 / West Midlands Partnerships and ‘ACTIVITY’ 2 Improve Mental Health and Well-Being- Kate O’Hara Mental Health Promotion Programme Lead
CSIP West Midlands
12.00 / Evaluating programmes that aim to improve mental health & well being - Fraser Battye, Senior Consultant, GHK Consulting Ltd
Regional Well Being Portfolio Evaluators
12.25 / Questions to speakers
12.45 / Annual General Meeting
Lunch
2.15 / Master classes
4.15 / Close of conference

The Presentations

Dr Neil Deuchar, Medical Director of Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust.

An introduction to the Feel Good Factor

Dr Lynne Friedli, Mental Health Promotion Specialist

Inequalities in mental health and well being and how to engage with key groups

Professor Ken Fox, Department of Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences, BristolUniversity

The Feel Good Factor: The evidence and effectiveness of using physical activity for positive mental health.

Kate O’hara, Mental Health Promotion Programme Lead, CSIP West Midlands

West Midlands Partnerships and ACTIVTY 2 improve mental health and well being.

Fraser Battye, Senior Consultant, GHK Consulting Ltd, Regional Well Being PortfolioEvaluators

Evaluating programmes that aim to improve mental health and well being

Copies of the presentations from the day can be downloaded from our web pages at the Observatory website

Feedback from the presentations

Delegates were asked to rate the presentations as part of the evaluation process for the event, Table 1 below shows the ratings given for each presentation

Table 1:

Presentation / 1
Very Poor / 2
Poor / 3
Satisfactory / 4
Good / 5
Excellent
Dr Neil Deuchar, Medical Director of Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust. / 7 / 22 / 11
Dr Lynne Friedli, Mental Health Promotion Specialist / 2 / 20 / 18
Professor Ken Fox, Department of Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences, BristolUniversity / 5 / 23 / 16
Kate O’hara, Mental Health Promotion Programme Lead, CSIP West Midlands / 1 / 1 / 26 / 15
Fraser Battye, Senior Consultant, GHK Consulting Ltd, Regional Well Being PortfolioEvaluators / 4 / 22 / 17

Organisation of the conference

Table 2 below shows the ratings given for aspects of the conference

Table 2:

Conference aspect / 1
Very Poor / 2
Poor / 3
Satisfactory / 4
Good / 5
Excellent
Pre Seminar
information / 1 / 1 / 5 / 20 / 14
Booking Procedures / 4 / 20 / 16
Overall Seminar Programme / 4 / 29 / 13
Location of Venue / 1 / 8 / 23 / 16
Venue / 2 / 3 / 22 / 14
Refreshments / 1 / 3 / 10 / 16 / 10

A comment was made about poor booking procedures for service users.

We also had some negative comments about the venue and its refreshments.

What did delegates gain as a result of the conference?

Delegates were asked if as a result of attending the event, they feel that they have a greater understanding of mental health and physical activity.

Table 3 below shows the feedback of this statement

Table 3:

Strongly disagree / Disagree / Neutral / Agree / Strongly
1 / 3 / 31 / 9

93% of delegates agreed that as a result of the event they have a greater understanding of mental health and physical activity.

A comment was made about the need to make access to information and facilities easier to understand for service users.

Delegates wereaskedwhether the event had given them an opportunity to contribute significantly to the development of mental health and physical activity.

Table 4 below shows the feedback of this statement

Table 4:

Strongly disagree / Disagree / Neutral / Agree / Strongly
1 / 2 / 7 / 31 / 3

79% of delegates agreed that the event has given them an opportunity to contribute significantly to the development of mental health and physical activity.

As part of the event, there were six master class sessions to give delegates examples of mental health and physical activity in practice across the region.

  1. UK Enquiry into Mental Health of OP – Age Concern (Led by Michelle Lee, Independent consultant)

This master class looks at the findings from the UK Inquiry into Mental Health and Well-Being in Later Life, which makes a clear link between physical activity and mental health and well-being for older people. The master class identified some of the particular issues for older people and talked about ways of creatively applying design methods to social issues. The discussion also looked at the importance of - and challenges in - co-producing services with members of the public.

  1. Learning from the Living Well in the West Midlands (Led byJazz Kainth, Walsall tPCT and Emily Smith, Living Well in the West Midlands, WMRA)

The Living Well in the West Midlands programme is a regional portfolio of 29 projects that have been funded by the Big Lottery Fund to improve health and well being through the delivery of physical activity, mental health and healthy eating interventions. The programmes have been initiated over the last year and this master class identified progress and successes in the delivery of this innovative programme.

  1. Giving Offenders a Sporting Chance (Led by David WilliamsProgramme Directorfor Offender Health and Social Care, CSIP West Midlands)

Telford & Wrekin Authority, Working with the West Mercia Probation Service and private sector organisation, have developed a brief intervention programme that combines physical activity and mentorship for offenders in the community. The programme has provided offenders with an opportunity to learn new skills, experience the benefit of physical activity and address their offending behaviour. This master class explores the approaches taken within the project, identified the outcomes that can be achieved and identified opportunities for further developing such as approaches in the region.

  1. Referring and signposting mental health patients to physical activity opportunities (Led by Suzanne Gardner, Regional Sport and Health Coordinator PAN-WM and Nathan Moore, Sandwell PCT)

This master class identified current practice in using referral and signposting systems for mental health service users to access physical activity opportunities locally, regionally and nationally and how this could be improved in future.

  1. Using sport and activities to reach people with mental health problems (Led by Alan Parker, Birmingham City Council & Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Trust)

This master class looked at approaches to using sport as a method of engaging with people with mental health problems, identifying best practice across the region.

  1. The Feel Good Factor (Led by Naomi Ellis, StaffordshireUniversity & Harjit Kooner, Regional Social Marketing Manager)

This master class explored campaigning and social marketing approaches to improving mental well being through physical activity. This master class provided details of several national campaigns and the initial findings of insight work into how we should sell the mental health benefits of physical activity

Table 5 below details the scale ratings on how useful delegates found the master class sessions?

12345

Not at all useful Satisfactory Very useful

8217

77% of delegates agreed that they feel the master class sessions were useful.

Feedback from the delegates

Delegates were asked to list two actions they have considered as a result of attending the conference.

The following responses were given:

  • Referral scheme development
  • Staff training
  • Be more aware of promotional wording “ mental health”
  • Look at websites for supporting evidence
  • Feedback information to work colleagues
  • Make stronger links
  • To interact more with mental health
  • Exchanging contact details with sport and PA organisations
  • Incorporate some of the issues into my work e.g. statistics, social benefits
  • Develop social marketing tools to better scope clients I work with
  • Look at tools with a potential to advise
  • Continue use of physical activity in mental health
  • Continue to support development of partnership working across physical activity and

mental health

  • Look to hold similar conference in London
  • Working with CSIP
  • Promote mental health to the older
  • Promote to the African Caribbean community
  • Looking at a social impact report
  • Assessing other activities/ venues
  • Ensuring everyone in the team considers mental health
  • Increasedevidence based to support future bids
  • Mentalhealth not mental illness
  • Sign up to a yoga course
  • The benefits of physical activity and its contribution to mental health
  • Make more event links between programmes
  • Get involved in more physical activity personally
  • Lobby my MP

The majority of delegates heard about the conference via e-mail or through colleagues.

Additional Comments from delegates

The following comments were included on the feedback sheets from the event:

  • “Very interesting, enjoyable”
  • “Master class – very quiet needed microphone”
  • “Very enjoyable, Thank you”
  • “Not the best value for this event”
  • “Good facilities”
  • “Food was a disappointment but all else excellent”
  • “Great Day”
  • “Thanks very much, onwards and upwards!”
  • “Excellent training day- well delivered”
  • “Excellent venue and facilities”
  • “All speakers were very good”
  • “All talk of holistic care provision, all very good but a far cry from provision of services”
  • “Interesting and a useful day”
  • “Access to information and facilities for service users needs to be made more widespread and easier. Social justice very important not always easy for service users to participate, sorry not e-mail, fax machine, money, etc- access hindered by health service”
  • “I feel service user participation was hindered by PMHG, all places should have been filled, but Sue James at CSIP was very helpful”
  • “service user contribution to workshop on football and mental health was inspiring- well done”

Photographs from the event

Dr Lynne Friedli, Mental Health Promotion Specialist

Professor Ken Fox, Department of Exercise, Nutrition and Health Sciences, BristolUniversity

Kate O’Hara, Mental Health Promotion Programme Lead, CSIP West Midlands

Fraser Battye, Senior Consultant, GHK Consulting Ltd, Regional Well Being PortfolioEvaluators

Delegates on the day

Giving Offenders a Sporting Chance led by David WilliamsProgramme Directorfor Offender Health and Social Care, CSIP West Midlands

UK Enquiry into Mental Health of OP – Age Concern led by Michelle Lee, Independent consultant

The Feel Good Factor led by Naomi Ellis, Staffordshire University & Harjit Kooner, Regional Social Marketing Manager

Using sport and activities to reach people with mental health problems led by Alan Parker, Birmingham City Council & Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Trust

Referring and signposting mental health patients to physical activity opportunitiesled by Suzanne Gardner, Regional Sport and Health Coordinator PAN-WM and Nathan Moore, Sandwell PCT

Learning from the Living Well in the West Midlands led byJazz Kainth, Walsall tPCT

and Emily Smith, Living Well in the West Midlands, WMRA