Mums get free use of sports centres to fight depression

Published on Wednesday 10 December 2008 10:35

NEW mothers suffering from post-natal depression or anxiety are to be given free use of city sports centres.

Women who are referred by their GP will receive an Edinburgh Leisure card allowing them free swimming, access to the gym and fitness classes. Exercise is seen as one of the best ways to help tackle milder forms of depression.

The move comes in the wake of crches being closed at four of the city's eight public leisure centres in June.

The new project will see mums offered free access to the centres at off-peak times and free crche facilities.

It will initially take place in two leisure centres, Gracemount and another as-yet-unidentified centre, which will join the programme in January.

The pilot programme is a partnership between NHS Lothian and Edinburgh Leisure, supported by the charity Crossreach.

Sheena Lowrie, a senior health promotion specialist in mental health for NHS Lothian, said: "There is very good evidence that physical activity is an effective treatment in reducing the symptoms of mild depression.

"We've trained staff at Gracemount, and Edinburgh Leisure is planning to incorporate the training into its continuing professional development programme.

"It also contributes to one of our mental health and wellbeing team's aims of reducing stigma and discrimination."

Women taking part will be able to use facilities for free for the first six months, 1 a time for the second six months, then at a reduced rate for a second year.

The initiative has been welcomed by the Mental Health Foundation, whose chief executive, Andrew McCulloch, said: "There is a real need for increased availability of exercise on prescription, so that it is accessible alongside anti-depressant medication and psychological therapies. Depression is a complex illness."

Earlier this year, campaigning mothers fought to keep crches open at Edinburgh Leisure centres, despite the council insisting they were an expensive burden on limited resources.

Concerns were raised that mothers who relied on exercise as a way of getting out the house and meeting people in the same situation would effectively be shut out, because many would be unable to afford alternative, more expensive, childcare.

Demonstrations took place and petitions were collected with thousands of signatures.

It was eventually decided that four of the eight crches would shut, two less than initially planned.