Insight Updates
August is upon us and we are already over half-way in 2019! It’s been a busy year for the Sport and Physical Activity industry, and with us in full-flow of the summer holidays, there is no better time to look at important pieces of insight!
Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent boast some of the most scenic areas in the country. From the Peak District to Cannock Chase and beyond, we know that Staffordshire is a great place to walk or cycle.
Therefore, this month’s focus is around Active Travel, with some handy research pieces, insight documents, mapping tools and data-sets to begin your ‘journey’ in helping more people to improve health and wellbeing through travel.
We hope you find the updates useful and enjoy the rest of summer!
Resources
Staffordshire County Council – Cycling Maps
Type: Mapping
Geography: District
Theme: Travel
Description: Staffordshire County Council have produced a comprehensive set of maps for each Staffordshire district with an aim to help cyclists plan their journeys to ensure that they are more safe, effective and efficient. The maps display routes that are available at present and highlights the best routes along quieter roads. Whether you are a keen cyclist, wanting to improve your fitness or are trying something new, these handy guides will get you well on your way to safe and enjoyable cycling in the county!
Sport England – Active Travel & Physical Activity: Evidence Review
Type: Research
Geography: National
Theme: Travel
Description: A Sport England commissioned partnership approach between representatives of a range of Universities and the Sustrans organisation. This evidence review explores the valuable significance that walking and cycling holds on the nation’s activity levels. The report looks at the current scope of ‘Active Travel’ in terms of evidential, statistical and study analysis, the current gaps in research and evaluative summaries on the effects that active travel can have on increasing physical, psychological and emotional health and wellbeing.
Ramblers – Benefits of Walking
Type: Insight
Geography: National
Theme: Travel / Health and Wellbeing
Description: Ramblers UK have created an insightful fact sheet surrounding the benefits of walking. Looking at health, economic and social benefits, this document provides indication and processes to demonstrate how walking can have an impact on the lives of everyone; detailing how these changes can be recognised and sustained through such exercises. Looking at both factual and opinionated evidences, backed by research, this is a great resource to demonstrate the importance and value of investment in walking!
Tip of the month!
Examine the occurring themes
Being able to find the insight and research is one thing, having the ability to understand and be critical of these is another. When attempting to analyse the information portrayed, it may be useful to take a step back to look at the overall theme that is occurring, including the questions that may fall under this theme.
In most instances, research can look at a variety of themes so another way to consider this is understanding the connection between each of the themes you are analysing. We have taken an example below from Sport England’s Active Travel and Physical Activity evidence review:
Analysis of the Active Lives Survey reported by the Department of Transport 21 states that more adults were dependent on walking rather than cycling to stay active, with 10% dependent on walking for leisure and 6.5% on walking for travel. With much lower prevalence, 1.2% of adults were dependent on cycling for leisure to be active and 0.8% were dependent on cycling for travel to be active.
‘Dependent’ means that ‘if you removed the impact of that activity, an active individual would no longer be considered active because they are not physically active for enough time’. So, using this rather strict definition, 7.3% of all adults are dependent on active travel (walking and cycling) to meet the physical activity guidelines.
Theme: Dependency of walking & cycling
Sub-theme: Removal of ‘activity impact’
Outline: More adults consider walking and cycling as modes of transport rather than methods to be active.
Key question to consider: Why is this the case? – Look at further evidence from other reliable sources.
This is just an example of how analysis can be completed and this can be done in a variety of ways, all of which will be suited to your own approaches.
Whether this is research, gathering information to kick-start a funding application or to evidence your programme effectiveness in evaluation, this method is a great starting point!
For more info …
For further information, research and data sets to access, please do not hesitate to get in contact with the SASSOT team by following the link here.
Please follow the link here to our Insight Hub for more useful hints and tips, as well providing links to both national and local data sets that can be used to support your ventures through sport and physical activity.
For further information, please contact:
David Richards
Communities and Insight Officer
07800 619693
drichards@staffordbc.gov.uk