Nuffield Health and Manchester Metropolitan University partner to deliver medical intervention in a fitness environment

The UK’s largest healthcare charity and a leading research university have teamed up to create a scalable intervention to use physical activity to treat chronic health conditions.

Nuffield Health and Manchester Met’s pioneering three-year research partnership will deliver a clinically assured, exercise-based approach to improving health outcomes for people living with a range of long-term conditions, which will be scaled to a national level by the end of 2027.

As the government shapes its 10-year health and care plan, this partnership will demonstrate the potential of movement-based interventions to address key national priorities.

The initial pilot will operate from a community hub in Platt Lane, Manchester – an area chosen to address health disparities linked to social inequality – and the programme will be built on research that demonstrates the significant role fitness professionals can play in managing health conditions.

Sustainable training pathways will be established to provide a standardised approach and personal trainers will be upskilled in order to deliver the community-based rehabilitation.

Peer-mentoring will also be used to foster long-term behaviour change and a sense of community.

The partners are keen to emphasise that this programme is not a fitness intervention, but a medical intervention delivered in a fitness environment – evolving the traditional model of what is considered as healthcare.

Dr Davina Deniszczyc, charity and medical director at Nuffield Health, says: “Movement is a powerful tool – not just to improve individual health, but to reduce sickness absence, boost productivity and support the government’s growth agenda.

“If the government is serious about shifting care out of hospitals and into the community, it must embrace new models of care that deliver interventions in local settings.

“As the 10-year plan takes shape, policymakers have a unique opportunity to make movement a cornerstone of a healthier, more resilient society.

“Our partnership will design, test and deliver a symptom-led rehabilitation model aligned with the government’s ambition to shift care safely and effectively from hospitals to the community.

“It highlights the vital extended scope fitness professionals can undertake and the transformative potential of community-based programmes in managing long term conditions and multi-morbidity, as a standard treatment pathway alongside traditional medicine.

“By combining Nuffield Health’s community-based expertise with Manchester Met’s world-class research, we can deliver academically robust, real-world solutions that can be quickly adopted and scaled nationally.”

Professor Tim Cable, director of the Institute for Sport at Manchester Metropolitan University, says: “More than 15 million people in the UK live with long-term health conditions, yet supported exercise – a proven and cost-effective management tool – remains underutilised.

“This partnership will not only further evidence the transformative role of movement, but also provide a scalable, clinically governed blueprint for a national programme, that can be evaluated and refined through our research.”

According to Nuffield Trust an estimated 15 million people in the UK are living with long-term health conditions and government figures show 2.8 million are economically inactive due to long-term illness.

The Office for Budget Responsibility projects a £30 billion rise in spending on sickness and disability benefits by 2029.

Data from Nuffield Health’s Healthier Nation Index shows that less than 20 per cent of people with conditions such as osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, chronic back pain, or fibromyalgia have been recommended exercise-based support by their GP.

Nuffield Health already runs a series of rehabilitation programmes for conditions including joint pain, Long-COVID, and cardiac episodes.

The charity’s Joint Pain Programme, launched in 2019, has improved outcomes for more than 31,000 people, reduced pressure on the NHS, and lowered sickness absence rates. In 2023 alone, the programme contributed more than £86.5 million to the UK economy by helping participants return to good health and employment.