News

The council is using its £13m public health budget to tackle the growing childhood obesity crisis and is inviting doctors, nurses, health visitors and other professionals to become new school governors.

Donna Martin, Rochdale Borough Council cabinet member for children, told local news: “Obesity in young people is a ticking time bomb. It's a nationwide problem and it's getting worse year on year. Overweight children become overweight adults and face a range of chronic health problems as they get older.

"Many overweight children, particularly girls, suffer from lack of confidence which often affects their performance at school. That in turn hinders their life chances later on.

"Each school will have to approve the new post and will recruit the new governors from the local community.

"Health governors could be doctors, nurses, health visitors or other health professionals. I am sure there would be no shortage of volunteers to take up these important roles."

In Rochdale, almost one in ten pupils (9.2%) when they begin school and over one in five (20.3%) are obese when they reach year 6, according to the latest figures published by the National Child Measurement Programme.

The figures are over the national average, in which 9.1% of reception children are obese in reception and 19.1% are obese in year 6.