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Healthier habits

Teenagers who go to the Steel Inn Youth Centre on Sheffield’s Manor estate often have one thing on their minds; to join the SHINE project and lose weight. But, as 17-year-old Emma discovered, there are many more things that you can achieve on the road to a healthier life.

SHINE – or Self Help, Independence, Nutrition and Exercise – aims to help obese young people in the Sheffield area gain a range of skills to change their lifestyles. As Emma explains: "I was 13 stone when I joined the group, and I was overweight for most of my life before SHINE. It makes you work through your problems."  

Instead of using diets, group members try to discover why they are overweight in the first place and to tackle those issues with a range of activities.

For Emma, it was about breaking the habits of a lifetime. “When I was at primary school, I wouldn’t go out for my breaks. I would ask the teachers if I could stay in and help instead. I felt lonely and isolated – I got bullied because I was fat and wore glasses.”

An important lesson

With regular health checks every four to six weeks, the young people are encouraged to keep on top of their weight and take responsibility for changing their own life.

Now Chair of SHINE’s Young People’s Committee, Emma is more comfortable with her appearance, and happier with the way she lives her life. "I don’t think I would be here if it wasn’t through this group - all the bullying was getting too much," she says.

The Young People’s Committee is made up of SHINE members and they’ve helped to shape the group; everyone’s thoughts and opinions have helped the course leader run a more enjoyable and effective programme filled with interesting activities.

Each of the 42 members can have their say on almost anything. Older members are encouraged to take a leading role in the group, and are given the opportunity to work towards a Duke of Edinburgh award.

Spreading the word

"The money we received from the Youth Funds has helped us achieve things we never thought we could do," explains Emma enthusiastically, "including buying a wide range of sports and camping equipment for our team events and Duke of Edinburgh activities."

SHINE hopes to use their prize money to help them spread the word about healthy living to more schools in their area – and also allow them to include members from other districts.

"We want to educate everyone - literally everyone; secondary schools, adults, everyone." But Emma doesn’t want to see the group stop there. "I think there should be more groups set up to follow our example. Some of the kids here travel an hour from Doncaster, and we have many young people joining every year. SHINE is really important to all of us - people used to say I would always be overweight. Now I’m proving them wrong."

• Find out more about the Shine project Opens new window