Active children and young people

Guidelines for children and young people

To lead healthier lives, children aged five to 18 should:

• do at least 1 hour of moderate to high intensity physical activity every day.
• take part in a variety of types and intensities of physical activity across the week. This is to develop movement skills, muscles and bones.

To lead healthier lives, children under five years old should:

• be encouraged to take part in activity of any intensity, including light activity and more energetic physical activity.

Keeping it fun

It’s important to encourage your child and find activities they enjoy. This way your child will not find the exercise a chore and they're more likely to stick at it.

The type of activity depends on the child. Exercise can be team-led such as football or basketball. You might want to join a club, have lessons or just have fun with family and friends.