Healthy Heart of Victoria changes name to Healthy Loddon Campaspe to better reflect focus of the initiative

Healthy Heart of Victoria has officially changed its name today to Healthy Loddon Campaspe to coincide with the launch of Stage 2 of the initiative and to better reflect its focus on improving health outcomes in Victoria’s Loddon Campaspe region.

Dave Richardson, Chair of the Loddon Campaspe Regional Partnership said the Partnership is immensely proud of the Healthy Loddon Campaspe initiative and noted “since the Partnership first went to Government in 2018 to highlight the higher than Victorian state average rates of chronic disease, obesity and high-risk health behaviours seen in our region, the Healthy Loddon Campaspe initiative has worked in partnership with the local community to improve health outcomes.

“We’re delighted to also support the name change of the initiative from Healthy Heart of Victoria to Healthy Loddon Campaspe, to more strongly highlight the broad scope of the initiative in improving the health of our community.”

Following the recent Victorian Government budget announcement, the initiative has received $6.6 million over the next four years to continue to improve health outcomes for residents in the Loddon Campaspe region.

The initiative will continue to work within the Campaspe, Central Goldfields, Loddon, Macedon Ranges and Mount Alexander Shires and the City of Greater Bendigo by:

• Implementing place-based activations focusing on physical activity and healthy eating. Projects will continue to focus on those parts of the community that are the least supported to help encourage healthy eating and get more people, more active, more often.

• A workforce of localised ‘Health Brokers’ in each Local Government Area focused on developing relationships to help build knowledge about health and wellbeing.

• Utilising and sharing the findings from the Healthy Loddon Campaspe Active Living Census to help ensure that investments, infrastructure, programs and services across the region are what is needed and where it’s needed.

Achievements during Stage 1 of Healthy Loddon Campaspe include the development and roll-out of the first regional Active Living Census which received over 24,500 responses; the delivery of outdoor fitness equipment and supporting programs at 11 locations as well as 25 new water fountains across the region; the implementation of healthy eating programs including Jamie’s Ministry of Food, Foodlinks partnership in Mount Alexander Shire, Café for a Day in Greater Bendigo, Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden projects in Campaspe Shire and the Healthy Sports Clubs project in three local government areas.

City of Greater Bendigo Mayor Andrea Metcalf said she congratulated the Victorian Government for continuing to support the Healthy Loddon Campaspe initiative for the next four years.

“There has been some great work done through the initiative to date and it’s important to continue to improve the health and wellbeing of local communities throughout the Loddon Campaspe region into the future especially following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mayor Metcalf.

Planning is currently underway for the implementation of Stage 2 of the Healthy Loddon Campaspe initiative and new projects will be announced in early 2023.

Image: Achievements during Stage 1 of Healthy Loddon Campaspe included the delivery of outdoor fitness equipment and supporting programs at 11 locations.