Sport England have taken the decision with Public Health England to pause the delivery of the Moving Healthcare Professional Programme (phase two) until at least September 2020, due to the coronavirus outbreak in the UK and its subsequent impact on the NHS and wider healthcare system.

A review of the proposed start date will take place during the summer, and any decision to resume delivery will be in line with the latest government updates about the scale of the virus and its impact across the NHS and society.

All stakeholders and partners will be updated following the review.

Physical activity will play a big role in ensuring that the public are living well during this period and the current Chief Medical Officer's physical activity guidelines remain relevant and can be achieved during this period.

To help healthcare professionals have conversations about physical activity with patients, the programme's e-learning modules on e-learning for Healthcare and BMJ Learning, along with the online Moving Medicine resource, will remain free to access and can be used by any healthcare professionals to support these conversations.

For more information, please email physicalactivity@phe.gov.uk

About the programme

Moving Healthcare Professionals is a national partnership programme led by us and Public Health England. It's designed to help support healthcare professionals in promoting physical activity to the public.

The programme provides free peer-led training and practical resources to support healthcare professionals implement the UK Chief Medical Officers' guidelines on physical activity. The training and resources also includes guidance for treatment and prevention of a breadth of conditions that recommend physical activity, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.

The critical role of healthcare professionals to increase activity among people has been highlighted in the national physical activity framework, Everybody Active Every Day, and is the driving force behind the Moving Healthcare Professionals Programme. The programme also supports the government's Sporting Future strategy, which set out an ambition to integrate sport and physical into care pathways.