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Being active

Getting active in Oxfordshire

Finding fun and easy ways to get active is really important to keep children and young people happy and healthy. Pre-schoolers need at least 3 hours of physical activity spread throughout the day, including active indoor and outdoor play. The more the better!

Aim for 60 minutes of activity every day for school aged children – and there are plenty of opportunities available in Oxfordshire to make this happen!

Getting started

Being active doesn’t just have to be about getting your child to join team sports or go running. The best way to increase activity levels is to make it fun and enjoyable, so focus on what your child really enjoys doing. Do they love dancing in the kitchen, playing in the garden or local park or creating obstacle courses? There are plenty of fantastic “Shake Up” videos to help get kids going in the morning. And if it’s something that the whole family can enjoy together, even better.

Being active isn’t just good for our physical health, it can have a huge impact on confidence and wellbeing. So building in at least 60 minutes of activity every day really does make a significant difference.

Ways to be active in Oxfordshire

There are plenty of ways to enjoy being active in Oxfordshire, from exploring local parks and walks, cycling together as a family, trying out a new sport or club or visiting your local leisure centre.

The website www.getoxfordshireactive.org has lots of information about ways to be active in Oxfordshire, from activities for families to local cycle paths, walking trails and leisure centres.

YouMove – activity programme for families in Oxfordshire

YouMove is a fantastic activity programme for families who have children on benefit-related free school meals, or children who are facing other challenges to living an active life.

YouMove provides low-cost or free activities across the county, including swimming, badminton, football, table tennis and lots more. It only takes a few minutes to sign up and there’s plenty of support and advice on offer too.

For more information please visit www.getoxfordshireactive.org/you-move

More Resources for Physical Activity

Change4Life: Advice and tips for families on being more active. Including the 10 minute shake up games in association with Disney.

Couch to 5k: A free NHS App which aims to support individuals to gradually build up their fitness to be able to run up to 5km without stopping.

Sport England Join the Movement: Tips, advice and guidance on how to keep or get active in and around the home.

Haktive: Healthy Active Kids have created weekly challenges to increase activity at home inside or outside with minimal equipment.

BBC Tiny Happy People: Aimed at Early Years, the BBC has numerous activities, ideas, advice and tips for parents and children under 5.

Disney Dance Along: This Girl Can partnering with Disney and real families across England, capturing some of the ways mums and kids get moving to the songs they love.

The Body Coach: Joe Wicks has created over 100 PE lesson videos on YouTube for children to take part in throughout their day.

Junior Park Run: A free weekly timed 2K run for 4-14 year olds.

The Oxfordshire Play Association: The OPA run a series of free community play days for children of all ages. These days include a range of play activities including face painting, soft play, giant bubbles, fire play, go karting and more. A useful resource for families looking to increase their child’s physical activity level

With thanks to Active Oxfordshire for developing this page.