Health Lottery’s ‘Let’s Get Cooking’ Campaign and the Battle against Obesity
Last Updated: Wednesday 13th August 2014, 16:11
The Health Lottery’s ‘Let’s Get Cooking’ campaign has been hailed as an unprecedented success by Business Secretary Vince Cable after he participated in a cooking club designed to combat obesity. The Liberal Democrat minister visited Twickenham Academy and described the project as “imaginative and forward-thinking”.
The community cooking club, which encourages parent-child participation, is just one local unit of a much larger nation-wide initiative. Cat Sheppard, a representative for the Children’s Food Trust, revealed that almost 29,000 people across the UK had taken part in the ‘Let’s Get Cooking’ scheme and an estimated 58% of those were enjoying a healthier diet as a result.
To date, the Children’s Food Trust has received an incredible £1.2 million from the Health Lottery to support valuable enterprises such as ‘Let’s Get Cooking’. The Health Lottery donates 20% of all proceeds to a wide range of health-related good causes, including the Children’s Food Trust, Alzheimer’s Society and Mencap, which are not covered by existing NHS funding.
Health Lottery owner Richard Desmond joined Vince Cable at the South London academy and donned an apron to help make blueberry muffins, omelettes and drop scones. While Desmond conceded that he was not the best chef ever, he said it was great to meet the people and volunteers behind the projects that benefit from money raised through the Health Lottery.
Cable, who has been the MP for Twickenham since 1997, commended the vital contribution made by the Health Lottery and said they seemed to be doing “really great work” in the effort to improve health while teaching valuable life skills.
The Health Lottery is drawn on Wednesdays and Saturdays each week and tickets cost just £1 per line. If you’d like to support worthy causes and play for a fantastic top prize of £100,000, tickets can be purchased online via the Lottery Tickets tab or in person from an authorised retailer.