Leicester Tigers club mascot Welford was on hand last week to help the launch of a new global programme to raise awareness of type 2 diabetes by the Leicester Diabetes Centre.
Leicester Tigers community programmes will reach more fans with the help of the global Novo Nordisk Cities Changing Diabetes programme launched in response to the dramatic rise of diabetes within urban areas.
Leicester became the first UK city to join the global partnership programme alongside Rome, Copenhagen, Houston, Johannesburg, Mexico City, Shanghai, Tianjin and Vancouver.
Leicester Tigers education and engagement manager David McDonald addressed over 100 representatives from across the Leicestershire community as part of the launch event at Leicester city hall.
David shared news of Tigers work across the community engaging in health, sport and education. The club’s recently launched Global Payments Healthy Schools programme encourages healthy living and eating across primary schools across Leicester – two trends that can help reduce the risk of diabetes.
Figures compiled from NHS Digital show that in the 12 month period from March 2016 to March 2017, 833 people in Leicester were diagnosed with diabetes. The majority of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes, a condition linked to diet and lifestyle.
Speaking at the event, David said: “A huge thanks to the team at the Leicester Diabetes Centre for inviting us along today and it was great to share the fantastic work our community team at Tigers deliver across the community.
“It was through the launch of our Healthy Schools initiative that we got involved with the Leicester city stakeholders and it’s important we continue to drive awareness of healthy living, exercise and eating nationwide and beyond.”
The Leicester Diabetes Centre – a partnership and collaboration between the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust and the University of Leicester – is an international Centre of Excellence in diabetes research, education and innovation.
Professor Davies CBE, Professor of Diabetes Medicine at the University of Leicester, said: “It was a huge honour to be announced as the first UK city to participate in this global programme, which we believe will provide an excellent opportunity for the Leicester Diabetes Centre and our partners across the city to work together to give the people in the city access to the best possible outcomes when it comes to preventing and treating type 2 diabetes.
Welford also posed for a photo with representatives including Lord Mayor of Leicester Councillor Rashmikant Joshi.
Find out more about the work of Leicester Tigers community and education programmes, click below
