About Us

A balanced diet and appropriate levels of physical activity are important for good health. Poor nutrition and physical inactivity are two of the leading causes of ill health in Wales and contribute to conditions such as obesity, coronary heart disease, type II diabetes and cancer. The effects of diet and physical activity on health often interact, co-ordination and integration of nutrition and physical activity policies and programmes, where appropriate, is therefore essential.

Physical Activity and Nutrition Networks Wales

The Networks aim to identify, engage and support individuals and organisations across Wales in collectively improving the health of the people of Wales by enhancing the physical activity levels and nutrition of all.

The Networks, funded by the Welsh Government facilitate partnership, collaboration and interaction to bring together all individuals and organisations concerned with improving physical activity and nutrition in Wales.

It represents a wide range of professionals from the academia, education, government, health, local government, voluntary, private sectors and others involved in implementing national nutrition and physical activity policies.

They provide support and facilitate the sharing of information and good practice principles. Network members are encouraged to disseminate information via the website and newsletter so that other members can be kept up to date about activities throughout Wales.
The Networks have been developed by the Wales Centre for Health, now part of Public Health Wales. Public Health Wales is an NHS organisation providing professionally independent public health advice and services to protect and improve the health and wellbeing of the population of Wales.

Public Health Wales has four statutory functions: 

• To provide and manage a range of public health, health protection, healthcare improvement, health advisory, child protection and microbiological laboratory services and services relating to the surveillance, prevention and control of communicable diseases; 
• To develop and maintain arrangements for making information about matters related to the protection and improvement of health in Wales available to the public; to undertake and commission research into such matters and to contribute to the provision and development of training in such matters; 
• To undertake the systematic collection, analysis and dissemination of information about the health of the people of Wales in particular including cancer incidence, mortality and survival; and prevalence of congenital anomalies; and 
• To provide, manage, monitor, evaluate and conduct research into screening of health conditions and screening of health related matters.

The Networks are co-ordinated by a small team, consisting of a Network Co-ordinator for Nutrition and a Network Co-ordinator for Physical Activity, managed by a Principal Public Health Practitioner and overseen by an Advisory Board.

History