Bradford project produces ‘outstanding’ rise in children’s physical activity

A project in the UK which included young people designing their own play spaces has led to what researchers say is the highest increase in children’s physical activity ever recorded by an intervention of its kind.The JU:MP programme (Join Us: Move Play) in Bradford, West Yorkshire, recruited children and young people to design play spaces on neglected land near their homes, choosing plants, balance beams, and nature play features, such as stone stacks and earth mounds which encourage imaginative games while keeping maintenance costs down.Alongside intervention in state schools, the project got madrasas (religious after-school programmes) to build exercise – including football, cricket and archery – into their classes for the first time, putting health messages in faith settings.The result was a transformation that benefited children from across Bradford’s communities, the organisers said. In the Shipley area of the city, which is predominantly white, investment in activity clubs saved parents from paying for after-school and holiday activities

Number of vape shops in England rises by almost 1,200% in a decade

The number of vape shops on high streets across England has increased by almost 1,200% over the past decade, while deprived areas have up to 25 times as many bookmakers and pawnbrokers as affluent ones, according to research.In 2014, only 33.8% of 317 local authorities in England had a vape shop, rising to 97.2% in 2024. Similarly, in 2014 less than 1% of local authorities in England had 10 or more vape shops, rising to 28% in 2024

Ministers brace for NHS strikes after doctors denounce ‘derisory’ pay rise

Ministers are bracing themselves for a potential wave of NHS strikes in England after doctors denounced pay rises of up to 5.4% this year as “derisory” and threatened to take action in protest.Teaching unions, after teachers were awarded a 4% increase, also responded angrily at the government’s refusal to fully fund the deal and warned that it would damage the quality of education that pupils received. The largest union said it planned to take the first step towards possible industrial action.The decision to award 1

What are the ‘radical’ proposed reforms to UK criminal sentencing?

A series of “radical” proposed reforms to criminal sentencing have been submitted to ministers by the former justice secretary David Gauke, who has said that, if implemented, they should solve the UK’s prison overcrowding problem. The government has confirmed that most of his recommendations will be accepted. But what are they?Gauke’s review suggests sentences of less than a year be ditched for most offences, calling on the government to legislate the reduction in their use. “While short custodial sentences may serve as punishment, they often fall short in providing meaningful rehabilitation to offenders, have a limited deterrent effect and come with high costs,” the report said.The review said a major increase in the number of people being sentenced to jail terms of less than a year had driven the increase in the prison population overall

Let’s not wait for fatal accidents to happen | Letters

Denis Campbell’s article rightly highlights the UK’s worsening health outcomes (UK ‘the sick person of the wealthy world’ amid increase in deaths from drugs and violence, 20 May), but it overlooks a key driver: the sharp rise in preventable accidents.Research by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA)  shows that the rate of accidental deaths has surged by 42% in the past decade and has risen fastest in the middle-aged. Accidents are now the second leading cause of death for under‑40s. These are not random tragedies; they are systemic failures.Currently there is no government plan to address this issue and responsibility is fragmented across many departments

Letter: Graham Serjeant obituary

In 1969 I was the first British student to go on exchange to the University of the West Indies, and had a three-month attachment with sickle-cell disease researchers Graham Serjeant and his wife, Beryl, in Jamaica. Graham immediately told me that the textbooks describing what many patients called “sick-as-hell disease” were all wrong.He and Beryl had quickly realised that with proper care, support and attention to detail, these patients could live far better and longer lives than had been thought possible. Doing clinics with Graham all across Jamaica in a battered VW van was such an education - likewise dancing the night away to ska and blue beat under the starry Jamaican skies.