Active Scotland Delivery Group minutes: September 2018

Attendees and apologies

Attendees 

• Joe FitzPatrick MSP, Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing (Chair)
• Laura Murdoch, Director for Sustainable and Active travel – Scottish Government
• Stewart Harris, CEO sportscotland
• Suzanne Hargreaves, Senior Education Officer, Education Scotland
• George Dodds, Director of Health Equity, NHS Health Scotland
• Sarah Hutcheon, Scottish Natural Heritage
• Derek Grieve, Active Scotland Division - Scottish Government
• Vicki McKechnie, Active Scotland Division (Minutes)
• Niall Taylor, Active Scotland Division
• Caspian Richards, Active Scotland Division

Apologies

• Francesca Osowska, Chief Executive, Scottish Natural Heritage
• Alan Armstrong, Strategic Director, Education Scotland

Items and actions

1. Welcome and Introductions

The Minister for Public Health Sport and Wellbeing welcomed everyone to the first meeting of the Active Scotland Delivery Group.

Introductions were made and apologies noted.

2. Background and Terms of Reference 

The group noted paper 1.1 on the background of the Active Scotland Delivery Plan. 

The Minister emphasised that the delivery plan is a dynamic document which will change over time to reflect changes in the landscape.

The Group noted Paper 1.2 on the Terms of Reference, and agreed on the Terms of reference (subject to a change which has now been made in the attached version).

Action 2.1-  Secretariat to amend the Terms of Reference to reflect the change.

3. Active Scotland Delivery Plan – monitoring progress 

The group discussed the approach to monitoring progress on the delivery plan during future meetings, including the following key points:

• a highlight report should be prepared ahead of each meeting by Active Scotland Division, pulling out key themes and common challenges across the range of outcomes and actions, to enable to Delivery Group to identify where there might be synergies or duplications of effort
• the report should also include a section reporting on partnership working, which would include reporting back on partnership opportunities identified in Delivery Group meetings as well as partnership working in implementing the individual actions in the delivery plan

Concluding the discussion, Delivery Group members agreed that the secretariat would contact members of their organisations for progress updates on their individual actions and will provide reports prior to the meetings which would bring out the above points.

Action 3.1- Active Scotland Division to contact members of each organisation for updates on their actions and then produce a highlight report paper for discussion at the next meeting.

4. Partnership Working – round table discussion

General discussion on subjects of:

• holding 1-1 meetings between members of the group outwith the main scheduled meetings to discuss specific partnership opportunities or challenges
• focusing in depth on specific contexts in future group meetings e.g. themes such as rurality, poverty, accessibility/disability, communities
• the challenge of achieving behavioural change
• the importance of monitoring and evaluation, and being able to draw on the Development Group for knowledge, evidence and research

Concluding the discussion the Minister suggested that the group decide on an in-depth topic to focus on at the next meeting. The group agreed this topic would be ‘empowering sustainable communities’.

Action 4.1- All members to bring to the table for the next meeting thoughts on empowering sustainable communities in the context of their organisation’s work. Secretariat to prepare a short paper to inform the discussion.

5. Barriers and opportunities – round table discussion

General discussion on the following points:

• sharing knowledge of what others are doing and advice on what works is helpful for individuals to be able to adjust their own plans
• the importance of community-based approaches and the positive impact that has on physical activity on the ground; and the challenge of making these sustainable
• the opportunity presented by development of the new Public Health Scotland body

Action 5.1- George Dodds to speak to the Executive Delivery Group (joint Directors) responsible for leading the preparations for Public Health Scotland about opportunities arising from their work that will influence progress with increased physical activity and partnership working during the development of the new body.

6. AOB and next meeting

The group will meet approximately quarterly, with the next meeting to be in January

Action 6.1- Secretariat to identify a date in January for the next meeting.