Kids Healthy Eating & Physical Activity Program (KHEPA) Childcare Program News On your mark, get set, go! It is all systems go for the Kids Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (KHEPA) program in 2007. Extensive planning has been undertaken by Hunter New England Health in 2006 to ensure that the biggest ever Childhood obesity prevention program in Australia addresses ways that can encourage healthy eating and physical activity practices in both the community and the home setting. As the exposure of children to junk food is growing and the opportunities for children to be physically active is shrinking, we have developed strategies to ensure that it is easy for parents and children to build healthy eating and physical activity into their lives. The KHEPA program is keeping kids healthy by organising the program into streams of activity centred around the settings that children spend time in. These include childcare services, schools, community and health services. A variety of communication strategies have also been developed to reach into the homes of families and children. The project aims to mainstream healthy eating and physical activity for children (0-15 yrs) and their families in the Hunter New England region by • ↓sweetened drink consumption ↑nonsweetened drinks • ↓ energy dense foods ↑ fruit and vegetables • ↑ physical activity (sport, play, leisure) • ↓ time spent in small screen recreation (TV, video games) A unique feature of the plan is its commitment to addressing the needs of Aboriginal children in the Hunter New England region. The program is set to get underway in each of the settings in early 2007 with the next 4 years dedicated to improving the overall health of our children and teenagers in the Hunter New England Area. New name in early 2007 The KHEPA team have been working hard with agencies to come up with a new and exciting name and brand for our program. Stay tuned and all will be revealed in early 2007. The Hunter and New England communities are undertaking Australia’s largest ever obesity prevention trial for children aged 0-15 years. Our kids health is everyone’s business. We can all play a part in making our kids healthier. ISSUED: March 2007 Why Childcare Services? Childcare services provide an ideal setting to work with children from 0-5 years of age, and their families. This is a particularly crucial stage of a child’s development, so it is important to introduce, promote and educate children about healthy eating and physical activity. Childcare services have a vital role in our children’s development and childcare workers have a great deal of experience in addressing and educating children on health and safety issues. The KHEPA program can support childcare services to build on existing programs and can introduce other initiatives so that our childcare services are recognised for their leadership in improving health and education outcomes for children. KHEPA in Childcare Centres in 2007 Hunter New England Health will be working in partnership with the Department of Community Services (DoCS) to implement the program. In 2007 the priority areas for action are: • Menu planning • Lunchboxes • Healthy drink choices • Parenting programs For each of the priority areas a program will be launched that includes: • Enhanced guidelines from DoCS • A resource package that includes example policies, ideas for communicating with parents, ideas for activities, ideas for involving parents, case studies from other centres • Training provided by HNEAHS and DoCS Services will be asked to put into practice each of these facets KHEPA Childcare Program News Telephone Interview Update Our telephone interviewers have been working hard over the last ten weeks, interviewing nearly 320 authorised supervisors from pre-schools and long day care centres in the Hunter New England region and another 320 centres outside the region to gain an insight into the physical activity and nutrition practices occurring in centres. Some preliminary results from the CATI indicate that: • The main barriers to promoting healthy eating are parents not being supportive and not having links with nutrition experts • Parenting workshops and parenting programs are the types of support which will assist in promoting healthy eating • Barriers to promoting physical activity include the sun smart policy, safety concerns and a lack of space for activity • Staff training and information on specific physical activity programs and activities are the types of support requested by centres. We would like to thank all of the centres for participating in the interviews and to those centres that provided their menus and policies. What are we doing next? March • Developing healthy menu planning and lunch box programs • Presenting information on the project at Authorised Supervisors Meetings throughout the area April • Providing reports and feedback to services on the results from the telephone interview. • Childcare program launch SAVE THIS DATE We are hoping to launch our childcare program in centres across the area in April. We are working towards a launch date of Tuesday 1st May, 2007 where centres will hold an event like a morning tea. Pop this date in your diary and we will keep you informed! Childcare working parties Two childcare working party meetings have been formed across the HNE Health region. The working parties have been formed in the Hunter and New England regions to support both rural and metropolitan childcare centres. We would like to thank DoCS, TAFE, Newcastle University, Family Day Care and Authorised Supervisors from a variety of services for their enthusiasm and commitment to the program. The working party will play a key role in developing resources and training for childcare centres. They will also guide the development of sustainable models for implementation of the program. The two childcare working parties will be meeting on a monthly basis for the next 6 months and then bi-monthly after this, so if your centre has any issues that you would like raised at these meetings, please contact your local CSA or childcare representative. It is important that we receive any information or feedback on ways that we can these programs can be successfully rolled out across our area. Hunter Working Party Rachel Sutherland- HNEAHS Melinda Neve- HNEAHS Kerith Duncanson- HNEAHS Carmen Burgess- HNEAHS Glenda Dawson- DoCS Patricia Curran- DoCS Julie Deer- DoCS Anne Mullen- DoCS Judith Addleton- DoCS Trish Carrol- KU Children's Services Tracey Sweetman- Family Day Care Jacinta Alvos- ABC Michelle Peden- Private LDC Lynn Connors- Community based LDC Adelaide Rombouts- Pre-School Janelle Gallagher- Pre-School Jacqueline Soto- Pre-School Emma Perry- Aboriginal PreSchool Judith Skerrit- TAFE NSW Lauren Williams- University of Newcastle Jillian Morris- The Cancer Council New England Working Party Rachel SutherlandHNEAHS Carolyn Keogh- HNEAHS Scott Trindall- HNEAHS Marguerite GriffithsHNEAHS Adam Tomsett- HNEAHS Julie May- DoCS Tracey Gordon- DoCS Narissa King- Private LDC Corrinne TattamCommunity based LDC Louise Cave- Birrellee MACS Michelle Cherniayeff- PreSchool Doreen Blair- Family Day Care For further information, please contact: Melinda Neve on 0249246246 or Melinda.Neve@hnehealth.nsw.gov.au Carolyn Keogh on 0267678630 or Carolyn.Keogh@hnehealth.nsw.gov.au