GM Moving proudly shares city region’s achievements with national government

By Hayley Lever, CEO of GM Moving | 10 March 2025 | TAGS: gm moving in action, GM Moving, Hayley Lever

The refreshed MOU signing last year marked ten years of our movement for movement in Greater Manchester and I am so proud of how far we have come.

As a city region we are determined to deliver active lives for all, and every year the contributions to this effort grow and deepen.

Most recently, we submitted 11 pages of evidence to the government’s spending review on the progress being made in Greater Manchester.

There is much further to go to address inactivity and inequalities, but we have learned a lot and wanted to support the government as they consider what is needed next at a national level.

National policy, legislation, and conditions are vital to create the conditions for our communities to thrive.

We’re proud to be one of 42 Active Partnerships, a network covering the whole of England working to transform lives and affect widespread social change.

Our shared focus is on creating the conditions in communities that enable every single person to be active.

We hope government will support us and our local, regional, and national partners go further, faster and deeper in our work.

Collective efforts saw GM reducing inactivity twice as quick as the national rate before the pandemic. Afterwards, GM achieved a faster recovery than the England average.

The latest Children and Young Person data has shown higher rates of activity (48.7%) in Greater Manchester compared to the national average (47.8%) for the second time.

And the impact our whole-system approach in GM has shown to have wide benefits. This independent research found devolution was leading to broad improvements in health outcomes.

Meanwhile, Transport for Greater Manchester has seen the number of trips on foot rise from 28% to 31%. Over the past 5 years, the number of people walking short journeys has increased from 52% to 57%.

This matters because movement, physical activity, and sport builds economic growth through health. Two key priorities for this government.

Moving more boosts opportunities and productivity. It is key to driving growth through a healthier, happier and more resilient nation.

Research partners at Sport England learned recently that movement, physical activity, and sport contributes £107.2billion in social value in England each year. That's £96.7billion in wellbeing value, and £10.5 billion in savings to the health and care system.

We are proud to be working closer than ever with our partners in the health and care system, connecting them to more and more of our colleagues in our ten localities.

For example, the latest insight from GM Active shows a significant increase in life satisfaction for people in GP exercise referrals.

The evidence base is building all the time, and our communities are feeling the benefits.

So I’d like to say a massive thank you to you all for everything you have done over the last ten years. Thank you for everything you continue to do, in aid of our shared mission of active lives for all.

Whether you’re delivering the GM strategy, the GM ICP strategy, or GM Moving in Action, it all adds up. It all contributes to a healthier, happier and more prosperous city region.

It’s thanks to your efforts we have evidence we can proudly share with government – I hope GM and other regions of England can benefit as a result.

I can’t wait to see how far we can go in the next 10 years.

Tickets are now live for the GM Moving Conference. Join us for a day of learning, leading and moving, with inspiring discussions, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities. Get your tickets now.