Over 80 UK companies commit to getting their employees 20% more active

July (London). Representatives from UK companies of all shapes and sizes made a public commitment yesterday – supported by Vitality and its Performance Champions (former professional athletes) – to get their employees 20% more active. This comes in line with the provider’s global commitment last year “to get 100m people 20% more active by 2025 (globally)”.

Vitality’s annual Champions welcome day, held yesterday at Twickenham Stadium and hosted by Maggie Alphonsi MBE, Director of Vitality Champions and former England Rugby World Cup winner, sees a new group of volunteers from across 100+ companies* recruited to the initiative which forms part of their ‘Vitality At Work’ offering.

Vitality Champions are health and wellness enthusiasts in their workplaces. Their role is to help motivate their colleagues to look after the health and wellbeing, and engage them in the Vitality Programme, which rewards individuals for healthy lifestyle choices.

At the event, they heard best practice success stories from previous years’ Champions, learnt about what the initiative gives to them and their businesses, plus made a commitment – with support from a Performance Champion – to help improve the health and wellbeing of colleagues. On Friday 26th July, this commitment will be reiterated by the Champions via their company’s social media channels under the hashtag #move20more.

The Performance Champions, which include double Olympic champion rower Alex Gregory and England Rugby Sevens player James Rodwell, alongside Team GB Olympic swimmers and hockey players, will follow yesterday’s session up with visits to companies throughout the year helping organisations to further motivate their staff and using examples from their personal athletic careers to inspire employees to get active and look after their health.

The initiative is aligned for Vitality At Work, who provide a unique service, providing expertise and engagement tools on wellbeing in the workplace, to companies who have its private medical insurance. The team focuses their work around four pillars: Nutrition; Physical Activity; Mental Wellbeing; and Understanding your Health. It aims to help empower organisations to inspire positive behavioural change, driving participation in the Vitality Programme and, in turn, building a healthier, more engaged and productive workforce.

This approach is firmly grounded in Vitality’s expertise in behavioural science and is supported by independently verified Britain’s Healthiest Workplace survey data.

Maggie Alphonsi commented: “This is an amazing initiative for UK businesses and employees, unlike anything offered by other health insurers in the UK. It really makes a positive difference to those companies and people taking part: we know this because we’re there with them throughout the year and beyond, providing coaching, mentoring and, importantly, helping celebrate success. It’s a formula that works as well in business as it does in sport.

“We’re taking things up a notch this year, getting behind Vitality’s global pledge to get more people around the world more active, bringing benefits to body and mind. Not to mention business. And it’s fantastic to see so many of our new Champions embracing this challenge today.”

Katie Hall of Fourfront Group - workplace design specialists - and one of this year’s new Champions, said: “I’m really excited to be a Vitality Champion because I’m passionate about the wellbeing of all the employees in my company. As a member of our People Team I have an instrumental role in our wellbeing strategy, which takes a holistic approach by including the physical, mental, financial and social aspects of our employee’s wellbeing.

“Our business will really benefit from the Champions initiative. It’ll be great to have the support and ideas from a community to help increase engagement in our fantastic Vitality plan. Plus, the commitment by Vitality to get people 20% more active is admirable and something we’re keen to support: it can only bring benefits to everyone involved.”

ENDS