Please maintain the scheme that helped me lose 9st, says Lincoln man

A person who misplaced greater than 9 stone (about 60kg) after getting assist to attend a slimming membership is urging his native authority to maintain the scheme in place.

One You Lincolnshire is a programme funded by central authorities that offers help for weight reduction and gymnasium membership, and to individuals who wish to stop ingesting and smoking.

Lincolnshire County Council, which manages the scheme, has permitted plans for a session over its future.

But Glen Allison, who weighed 21.5 stone (about 135kg) earlier than enrolling on the weight-loss course 12 months in the past, mentioned it ought to proceed and was “positively worth for cash.

One You Lincolnshire has an annual budget of £3m. Funding comes from a government grant, but the council and NHS decide how to spend it.

Last year, the scheme helped 25,000 people.

At a meeting earlier, the council’s executive, which is run by Reform UK, agreed to extend the existing service until September 2026.

In the meantime, there will be a public consultation on its future beyond next year.

Mr Allison, from Lincoln, said: “The extra they’ll do to assist individuals drop pounds, the happier the persons are going to be.

“Healthier people are going to put less pressure on the NHS. There’s so many benefits to supporting people to lose weight.”

He benefited from 12 weeks free at Slimming World and it motivated him to maintain specializing in his weight after the council-funded help completed.

“I just said to myself, ‘No matter what happens, I’m sticking at it’… If I feel like I need to give up, I need to remember why I started,” he mentioned. “I just had a serious talk with myself.”

Steve Clegg, the council’s government member for grownup care and well being, mentioned: “Our ambition is to ensure every pound of taxpayer’s money is spent as wisely and cost-effectively as possible.

“The funding for these companies is ring-fenced and needs to be used for public well being functions. So, I wish to be clear – this isn’t about cost-cutting, it is about deciding how finest to make use of the obtainable funding to enhance the well being and wellbeing of individuals in Lincolnshire.”

He added: “There are at present no proposals for the long-term way forward for the service, as we first wish to ask the general public for his or her views.

“We believe it’s important that our residents have a real opportunity to help shape our services, so they can best meet their needs.”

Analysis by Sharon Edwards, political reporter

The new Reform UK administration swept to energy in May’s native elections promising to “open the books” and discover financial savings.

All non-statutory companies are being examined and council properties could be sold off.

So it is no shock that the authority’s government has voted to take a look at the One You Lincolnshire service.

If the chief does finally resolve to scrap the scheme and put the cash into what it says are “other areas of public health”, it’s clear that it’s going to have a combat on its palms.

Other events on the council have come collectively to criticise such a transfer as a “false economy”.

Many argue that the service relieves stress on the NHS and social companies. The former shouldn’t be paid for by the council, however the latter is.

But Reform UK has a mandate to save cash and argues that the state can not afford to do for individuals what they need to do for themselves.

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