🚨 New Blog alert! 🚨 The updated CMO physical activity guidance is about everyone getting the benefits of movement, not just rigid targets that exclude many people When 1/3 of adults and nearly 1/2 of all children do not get the recommended amount for good health this is an important shift 🧵

Living Streets@livingstreets.bsky.social · 5d ago

Living Streets trustee @drjomaher.bsky.social has shared some easy ways to build more physical activity into everyday life: https://www.livingstreets.org.uk/JoMaher Jo's also running the @royalparkshalf.bsky.social to raise funds for Living Streets. Please support her here: https://bit.ly/3Uc2zE5

They’re also unlawful. Bicycles can be very heavy, meaning women, disabled people and older people - listed in the 2010 Equality Act as target inclusion groups - are excluded or impaired from using them. A reasonable adjustment would be to make proper, wheel-in cycle storage provision.

Anything other than a standard bike is a nightmare, more so with a heavy cargo bike etc. Difficult enough with kids who can jump off themselves, but what are you actually supposed to do with a toddler in a strap in seat? Where do you put them while you're trying to to get a 40kg bike onto that?!

Tonight, the Empire State Building lights will sparkle pink at 9:25 to honor Dolly Parton. A global icon, her seven-decade career touched generations. She leaves a legacy through her Dollywood Foundation and Imagination Library, providing millions of books to children.

Here's what I'm listening to right now. Most of us can only dream of leaving such a strong, positive mark on the world. music.apple.com/us/album/the...

The Essential Dolly Parton by Dolly Parton on Apple Music

Album · 2005 · 37 Songs

music.apple.com

This was designed by someone who either never rode a bike in their lives, or only ever rides super light road bikes with very narrow bars...

Dr Jo Maher NHS GP@drjomaher.bsky.social · last wk.

I’m not the first person to make this observation, but these cycle hangers are ridiculous! Having successfully got a bike reservation at last minute, next barrier to taking a bike on a train being able to lift it above head height- despite being tall and able bodied, needed help!

I took my ebike on the train a few days ago and was able to lean it against the wall near me because it was late and there weren't a lot of people on board. I have no idea what I would have done if it got crowded bc there's no way I could have lifted the heavy ebike upright onto the bike hooks.

Dr Jo Maher NHS GP@drjomaher.bsky.social · last wk.

I’m not the first person to make this observation, but these cycle hangers are ridiculous! Having successfully got a bike reservation at last minute, next barrier to taking a bike on a train being able to lift it above head height- despite being tall and able bodied, needed help!

This is why we really need adequate standards for #BikesOnTrains @cyclinguk.bsky.social @ategov.bsky.social

Dr Jo Maher NHS GP@drjomaher.bsky.social · last wk.

I’m not the first person to make this observation, but these cycle hangers are ridiculous! Having successfully got a bike reservation at last minute, next barrier to taking a bike on a train being able to lift it above head height- despite being tall and able bodied, needed help!

Train moan aside pretty happy with my choice today, next stop V&A East! @cwjoneschris.bsky.social here too doing his own thing- recording a new 2 way poetry podcast episode 📻

Dr Jo Maher NHS GP@drjomaher.bsky.social · last wk.

I’m not the first person to make this observation, but these cycle hangers are ridiculous! Having successfully got a bike reservation at last minute, next barrier to taking a bike on a train being able to lift it above head height- despite being tall and able bodied, needed help!

The first evidence that clean air zones can improve children's lung health was published last week 🎉. We were behind the ULEZ from the start, and to see this evidence is truly fantastic. More #CleanAir zones please @andyburnham.bsky.social! @qmul.bsky.social @london.gov.uk

Introduction of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone linked to improved lung growth in children

qmul.ac.uk

I’m not the first person to make this observation, but these cycle hangers are ridiculous! Having successfully got a bike reservation at last minute, next barrier to taking a bike on a train being able to lift it above head height- despite being tall and able bodied, needed help!

Swifts are gone. But where? Gilbert (like many others) believed they were hibernating in a lake. Made perfect sense - you see them swooping over a body of water one evening, next morning they are gone. He could not imagine the simpler, mind-boggling truth.

Gilbert White@gilbertwhite.bsky.social · 2w ago

1777: Pease are housed. Wheat harvest is general. No swifts: swifts seem to be gone.

Dina Asher-Smith is the most decorated athlete in European Championships history 🏆 She's earned ten medals in total, and seven of them are gold 🥇 Congratulations Dina! 👏

In this, my second post of August, I celebrate the good things that have happened over & around our house this summer @longbarrowpress.bsky.social @poet-markgoodwin.bsky.social @sheffswiftnetwork.bsky.social @drjomaher.bsky.social @petegreensolo.com cwjoneschris.substack.com/p/swift-diar...

Swift Diaries

Hope is the thing with feathers

cwjoneschris.substack.com

Hot roadsides, easy eclipsing, slime moulds, 🚲 on 🚃 & wild Wardsend. Today’s 🦉🏞️🗞️ notpaper for #TheOutdoorCity #Sheffield - abitblackoverbillsmothers.substack.com/p/sunday-at-...

Sunday at Bill's Mother's: 9th August 2026

Hot urban grasslands. Eclipse Wednesday. Chasing down bikes on trams. The beauty of slime moulds.

abitblackoverbillsmothers.substack.com

huddersfieldhub.co.uk/huddersfield... Thanks @benbloomsport.bsky.social for Observer article read in print - behind a paywall online meanwhile, here is Colin Spivey from Huddersfield, Britain’s fastest nonagenarian, who started running at his local #parkrun in 2012 - it’s never too late!

Huddersfield parkrun legend Colin Spivey becomes a European running champion and record breaker - aged 91 - Huddersfield Hub

Great grandad proves you're never too old as he re-writes the record books with his amazing running feats

huddersfieldhub.co.uk

😔“In 2005, about 7.5% of the UK’s front gardens were paved; by 2025 that had risen to 55%” “… changing paved gardens back to grass could reduce night-time temperatures by as much as 0.5C, and adding trees would double the benefit”

Weatherwatch: Paving over front gardens is leading to hotter nights

Changing paved areas to grass and planting trees can reduce urban heat island effect by as much as 1C, study shows

theguardian.com

Squat, green bulbs, bitter as smoke, I offer you figs from Sheffield’s east end. They have exile’s toughened flesh and skin; its deep-cut bloodline. Special one-day offer: 35% off 'Skin', the second collection of poems by Chris Jones skinchrisjones.wordpress.com

Land & 🔥in the #PeakDistrict / New curlew mural for #Sheffield #TheOutdoorCity / Counting #NatureRecovery at Shire Brook - today's local 🗞️🏞️🦉notpaper - abitblackoverbillsmothers.substack.com/p/sunday-at-...

Sunday at Bill's Mother's: 2nd August 2026

Damping down the fires. Call out for Curlew wall. Creature counts.

abitblackoverbillsmothers.substack.com

In this, my first post of August I write about the beginnings and ends of swift season and the time in between. @longbarrowpress.bsky.social @poet-markgoodwin.bsky.social @sheffswiftnetwork.bsky.social @drjomaher.bsky.social cwjoneschris.substack.com/p/swift-diar...

Swift Diaries

Time is what it is

cwjoneschris.substack.com

The same street in Levenshulme, Manchester, one hundred years apart. The private motor vehicle is an invasive species, which gradually crowds out and suffocates the rich social life of our cities. When cars don’t dominate the streets, life flourishes.

Another great piece of reporting from the Sheffield Tribune.

Sheffield Tribune@sheffieldtribune.bsky.social · last mo.

The Peak District is burning — and where there’s fire, there’s smoke. Given Sheffield’s proximity to the park, it feels inevitable that, if more frequent and severe fires keep happening on the moors, they are going to have an increasing effect on us. The question is, can we do anything about it?

Child pedestrian casualties are almost five times higher in England’s worst-off areas

Child pedestrian casualties are almost five times higher in England’s worst-off areas

Official figures expose widening gap in road deaths and injuries between poor and wealthy postcodes The number of children killed or injured crossing roads is almost five times higher in England’s most deprived areas than its wealthiest, official analysis suggests. Department for Transport figures show a widening gap over the past 10 years in road casualties between those living in the poorest 10% of postcodes and the most affluent 10%. Continue reading...

theguardian.com

Incentives for people who🚶‍♀️30m/day from NHS England? BMJ @scarlettmcnally.bsky.social "A better system'd reward modal shift 🚗 =>🚶🚲🛴🚌 It'd need changes to infrastructure, but strong evidence shows that active travel improves mental & physical health" #NHS #ActiveTravel www.bmj.com/content/394/...

My first Swift Diary for over a month, the first one posted in July. cwjoneschris.substack.com/p/swift-diar... @longbarrowpress.bsky.social @poet-markgoodwin.bsky.social @drjomaher.bsky.social @sheffswiftnetwork.bsky.social @petegreensolo.com

Swift Diaries

What is left behind

cwjoneschris.substack.com

Restart a Heart is nearly here! ❤️ Our updated Restart a Heart packs are now available, packed with resources and tips to help you get involved this October. Download now: www.resus.org.uk/get-involved/restart-heart-day/supporting-resources

Fabulous article in @bmj.com by @scarlettmcnally.bsky.social absolutely agree being active needs to be baked into the everyday and the more people adopting an active lifestyle the better, not just rewards for the already active . Shout out for @livingstreets.bsky.social much appreciated!

Prof Scarlett McNally@scarlettmcnally.bsky.social · last mo.

Woo-hoo! My new @bmj.com article On how to fix health. By enabling physical activity eg active travel + public transport. Discusses #motonormativity, incentives, culture www.bmj.com/content/394/... x @livingstreets.bsky.social @ianwalker.bsky.social @walkwheelcyclet.bsky.social @fsem-uk.bsky.social

Woo-hoo! My new @bmj.com article On how to fix health. By enabling physical activity eg active travel + public transport. Discusses #motonormativity, incentives, culture www.bmj.com/content/394/... x @livingstreets.bsky.social @ianwalker.bsky.social @walkwheelcyclet.bsky.social @fsem-uk.bsky.social

Scarlett McNally: The NHS rewarding walking doesn’t go far enough to encourage physical activity

NHS England recently announced plans to launch a new incentive scheme that will reward people who achieve 30 minutes of walking a day, adding up to a “marathon in a month.”1 I see several weaknesses i...

bmj.com

This week's 🐝🏞️🏃notpaper for #Sheffield #TheOutdoorCity - open.substack.com/pub/abitblac...

Sunday at Bill's Mother's: 19th July 2026

Bugs and Buggies issue. Smartphone insects with Ros Hancock plus Muddy Mother on how to run with toddlers.

open.substack.com

Nursing staff: add your name to our open letter. Good growth in every postcode starts with good health in every postcode and a strong and fairly paid nursing workforce to make it happen. bit.ly/44B9KYr

It's time to invest in nursing, for every postcode

Good economic growth starts with good health. That's why this new Westminster government must invest in nursing to put patients and communities first. Add your name to call for the change nursing need...

action.rcn.org.uk