Funded by Hallmark Foundation, the Live Well Together toolkit consists of fun activities, games and useful tips and ideas that are grouped into five different areas eat, drink, move, engage and connect and think (the Five Pillars for Aging Well).
Dr Jitka Vseteckova, Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Wellbeing, Education and Languages at The Open University, said: “Building new habits together while also having fun means practically that we are more likely to stick to them. We have co-designed and co-produced this toolkit to provide activities and challenges designed to help everyone make small changes together that make a big difference and help us all become healthier and happier.
“Via the toolkit we aim to support older participants in developing and keeping healthy habits as well as engaging younger generations with healthier living habits. The co-produced toolkit aims to enable and empower families to pledge together, whereby children together with their parents, grandparents/older family members, learn, have fun and foster healthy behaviours across the lifespan.”
Grounded in research, the toolkit is deliberately intergenerational and designed so that people of all ages can enjoy learning together. Researchers hope that it will:
- Boost mental health and wellbeing
- Promote knowledge and skill sharing
- Reduce feelings of isolation and social loneliness
- Build bonds, understanding and respect between different age groups
- Support a sense of purpose and belonging
- Strengthen family relationships and place learning about healthy lifestyle choices in the heart of the family
Juliette Collier, National Director at Campaign for Learning said: “We hope the ‘Live Well Together’ activities will encourage generations of all ages to build new habits to help them live well. When we learn together, we develop empathy and understanding and are more likely to be motivated to make positive changes. These can make a real difference to how we feel and improve our future health and happiness.”
Dr Vseteckova added: “The most important thing is to enjoy choosing activities and challenges to do together, talking about which things you want to try and just giving them a go!”
