Centres around the UK have been approved to deliver a new ground-breaking qualification aiming to improve the wellbeing of young people and those around them.
The Award in Lifestyle Management will encourage students to lead a healthy lifestyle, both on an emotional and physical level, and will inform them on key issues and subjects, including: nutrition; physical fitness; effects of smoking, alcohol abuse and drug misuse; and sexual health. It will also provide them with strategies to deal with problems they might face such as stress, peer pressure and bullying.
The new qualification, endorsed by the British Heart Foundation, has been created by Central YMCA Qualifications (CYQ), the UK’s leading health and fitness awarding body. Its timely launch comes as reports show that teenagers in the UK are among the unhealthiest and least fit in Western Europe. Some 18 schools, colleges and training centres have this autumn begun delivering the qualification to students between the ages of 14 and 16-years old.
Rosi Prescott, Central YMCA’s Chief Executive, said: “This qualification really gets to the heart of the nation’s concern about young people, addressing worrying health trends among this group, such as the dramatic increase in adolescent obesity, high incidence of alcohol and drug abuse, the continued high rate of teenage pregnancy and STIs, and unsatisfactory levels of physical activity. “There is no better place to tackle these concerns than at school, with teenagers making lifelong choices which could make the difference between a full and healthy lifestyle or a lifetime of potential health and debility issues.”
The qualification has been designed to help young people understand what it means to be ‘healthy’ and ‘fit’ and how to make changes to improve their own health and wellbeing, as well as encouraging them to impact positively upon the behaviour of their friends, family and community. The Award, which is established on the National Qualifications Framework, is equivalent to the level of a GCSE.
The introduction of the new qualification comes as latest figures from the Department of Health show the number of obese 11-15-year-olds has quadrupled since the 1970s, with approximately a quarter of this age group classified as obese and more than a third as obese or overweight.
Further reports show that young people today are suffering more long-term illnesses than ever before, that teenage pregnancy and abortion rates in the UK continue to be the highest in Europe, and that the incidences of binge drinking, bullying and violent behaviour among this age group are on the increase. Ms Prescott continued: “We believe that understanding health issues, what is ‘good health’, and the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle, are as important as the ‘three R’s’ - reading, writing and arithmetic – and so it should be a subject that all young people learn about at school.The launch of this qualification is a step towards this.
“The Award goes much further than educating young people about health issues. Significantly, it is designed to help students have the confidence and skills to make their own lifestyle choices, to understand what they will gain from leading a more balanced lifestyle, and to inspire others to lead a healthier and more active lifestyle.”
Nicki Cooper, Head of Education at the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said: “The BHF knows how crucial it is to get young people interested in their heart health, which is why we’ve worked tirelessly over recent years to do just that with national campaigns, such as Food4Thought, aimed at school children.
“This new qualification will build on this work and give students a goal to aim for, as well as hopefully helping them to encourage healthier lifestyles among their friends and families.”
CYQ was the first awarding body in the UK to specialise on the provision of nationally and internationally recognised exercise, health and fitness qualifications. It is an operation of Central YMCA, the UK’s leading activity for health charity.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar