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Map of the Olympic Park site prior to development (2007) and the proposed Olympic Park in legacy mode (2012). Maps contain data from Ordnance Survey MasterMap Data, Crown Copyright 2007; Ordnance Survey MasterMap Data, Crown Copyright 2012; and Legacy Redevelopment Data, Copyright 2012 Olympic Park Legacy Company.
Source publication
Background
There is limited evidence for public health policy-makers on the health impacts of urban regeneration programmes.
Objectives
To assess whether or not the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and related urban regeneration, were associated with an increase in physical activity and mental health and well-being; to assess whether or n...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... aspects of physical legacy upon which the Olympic bid was based were either already in place, such as the transport connections through Stratford, or will be developed in the future, such as new residential development. Figure 5 depicts the pre-development Olympic Park site alongside the proposed post-Olympic development. Based on current plans, the area will undergo transformation from mostly light-industrial use with significant railway lands, to a mixed-use area with significant residential, commercial/retail, green and sporting infrastructure that is better connected to the surrounding neighbourhoods of east London. ...
Context 2
... individual change in access to green space was challenging, given that most change in green space is concentrated within the Olympic Park itself (see Figure 5) and not distributed across east London. In addition, it became clear that green space is relatively abundant within east London. ...
Citations
... The Olympic Games also have the potential to influence the quality of life for local residents [18][19][20][21], even if this impact is only temporary [22]. Similarly, they are viewed as a strategy for urban regeneration designed to stimulate or justify local development, becoming a tool of urban politics [23][24][25][26]. ...
Sport mega-events, like the Olympics, are renowned for their urban and socioeconomic impacts. Based on a literature review, this paper proposes a holistic framework for an Olympic-led sustainable planning process, encompassing five key sustainable urban principles: accessibility, integration, flexibility/adaptability, security, and sustainability compliance. The framework provides a structured approach to assess these principles at three different temporal and spatial levels: location selection, pre-event planning, and post-event planning. The proposed holistic framework is applied to the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics, revealing a significant disconnection between the initially promised sustainable development goals and practical achievements. While enhancements in accessibility were observed, the other key sustainable urban principles exhibited limited or negligible improvements. The proposed holistic framework holds the potential to foster lasting positive impacts and sustainable urban improvements in host cities, particularly in developing countries.
... Supplementing the quantitative papers, were three studies combining both quantitative and qualitative methods (Bolton and Martin 2013, Chen and Henry 2016, Cummins et al. 2018. These were also included in the quantitative synthesis displayed in Table 1. ...
... Studies were conducted most commonly in the United Kingdom (UK), which accounted for 10 of the 13 papers in the quantitative synthesis (77%) (Bolton and Martin 2013, Bullough et al. 2015, Kokolakakis et al. 2015Chen et al., Verhoef et al. 2016, Weed 2016, Cummins et al. 2018, Higgerson et al. 2018, Ikramullah et al. 2018). Other countries in which studies of the impact of sport policies were identified were Finland, the United States of America, Germany, and Russia. ...
... Within this policy area evidence for a single policy action 'build sport facilities' with four evidence codes (36%) was found. Significant positive evidence of effect was reported by three studies (Ståhl et al. 2002, Ishkineeva and Ozerova 2017, Cummins et al. 2018) and one study (Weed 2016) reported outcomes for a time series analysis without a significance test. ...
Participation in sport contributes to increased physical activity (PA) levels. Increasing PA is a public health concern due to its recognised impact on health outcomes. International policy actors such as the Council of Europe, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH) have recommended that ‘sport for all’ is promoted both for public health and as a basic right. This review aims to evaluate sport related policies aimed at maximising the opportunity to participate in PA and sporting activity. Six electronic databases were systematically searched for quantitative, qualitative and review studies investigating how public sport policy affects PA outcomes. The scientific literature was screened according to predetermined eligibility criteria. Following study selection and data extraction, the quality was assessed using modified versions of existing quality assessment tools. Results were synthesised and the context in which policy actions occurred analysed using the Context and Implementation of Complex Interventions (CICI) framework. Database searches identified 3705 unique articles. A total of 93 full-text articles were assessed, with 22 meeting our inclusion criteria. Seven unique ‘policy actions’ were identified and were categorised into the ‘policy areas’ Facilities, Financial, Collaboration and Exhortation. Policy actions to promote PA and sport participation have demonstrated qualified success but there is limited evidence of success in engaging hard to reach groups. Therefore, policymakers utilising sport to increase PA should treat it as a complementary intervention alongside other policy actions based on a systems perspective.
... Supplementing the quantitative papers, were three studies combining both quantitative and qualitative methods (Bolton and Martin 2013, Chen and Henry 2016, Cummins et al. 2018. These were also included in the quantitative synthesis displayed in Table 1. ...
... Studies were conducted most commonly in the United Kingdom (UK), which accounted for 10 of the 13 papers in the quantitative synthesis (77%) (Bolton and Martin 2013, Bullough et al. 2015, Kokolakakis et al. 2015Chen et al., Verhoef et al. 2016, Weed 2016, Cummins et al. 2018, Higgerson et al. 2018, Ikramullah et al. 2018). Other countries in which studies of the impact of sport policies were identified were Finland, the United States of America, Germany, and Russia. ...
... Within this policy area evidence for a single policy action 'build sport facilities' with four evidence codes (36%) was found. Significant positive evidence of effect was reported by three studies (Ståhl et al. 2002, Ishkineeva and Ozerova 2017, Cummins et al. 2018) and one study (Weed 2016) reported outcomes for a time series analysis without a significance test. ...
Participation in sport contributes to increased physical activity (PA) levels. Increasing PA is a public health concern due to its recognised impact on health outcomes. International policy actors such as the Council of Europe, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH) have recommended that 'sport for all' is promoted both for public health and as a basic right. This review aims to evaluate sport related policies aimed at maximising the opportunity to participate in PA and sporting activity. Six electronic databases were systematically searched for quantitative, qualitative and review studies investigating how public sport policy affects PA outcomes. The scientific literature was screened according to predetermined eligibility criteria. Following study selection and data extraction, the quality was assessed using modified versions of existing quality assessment tools. Results were synthesised and the context in which policy actions occurred analysed using the Context and Implementation of Complex Interventions (CICI) framework. Database searches identified 3705 unique articles. A total of 93 full-text articles were assessed, with 22 meeting our inclusion criteria. Seven unique 'policy actions' were identified and were cate-gorised into the 'policy areas' Facilities, Financial, Collaboration and Exhortation. Policy actions to promote PA and sport participation have demonstrated qualified success but there is limited evidence of success in engaging hard to reach groups. Therefore, policymakers utilising sport to increase PA should treat it as a complementary intervention alongside other policy actions based on a systems perspective. ARTICLE HISTORY
... Making use of secondary data, where available, may be more achievable than new studies. In addition, regeneration projects have previously been evaluated using natural experimental study designs (e.g., [60]) and this approach could also be taken to examine the impact of contaminated site redevelopment on health outcomes. ...
(1) Background: Globally there is a vast legacy of contaminated sites from past industrial, commercial and military activity, waste disposal, and mineral extraction. This review examined the extent to which the remediation of contaminated sites reduces health risks to new and existing populations. (2) Methods: Standard academic databases were searched for papers that reported on health-related outcomes in humans following remediation and redevelopment of contaminated sites. Title/abstract screening, followed by full-text screening identified sixteen papers that met the eligibility criteria. (3) Results: Most studies were set in the United States of America and reported changes in blood lead concentrations in children, following soil remediation and, in some cases, public health campaigns to reduce exposure. Two further studies examined the impacts of remediation on soil contaminated with chromium and sediments contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). (4) Conclusions: Overall, the evidence suggests that remediation via removal, capping, and replacing soil, and planting vegetation is effective at reducing concentrations of lead and chromium in blood and urine in children. There is also evidence that sediment dredging can reduce PCB concentrations in umbilical cords in infants. Study designs are relatively weak and some recommendations are provided for those wishing to examine the health impacts of remediation.
... Additionally, the short-term and medium-term associations between Olympic Games and mental health of individuals were suggested by a previous study in which adolescents who were "no longer depressed" (risk ratio 1.53, 95% CI 1.07 to 2.20) at 6 months were more likely to come from the intervention borough that had urban regeneration due to the 2012 London Olympic Games. 10 The interactions and interdependency between mental health and child growth problems, especially overweight and obesity, have also received a lot of attention and evidence from researchers. 11 12 The previous findings above indicated the potential positive role that Olympic Games may serve in the growth of children. ...
Objectives
To estimate the association between the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games (BOG) and growth of children in China.
Methods
A total sample of 6 951 children aged 3–10 years were included, among which 3 201 were interviewed in 2014 and 3 750 were interviewed in 2018. The BOG was used as a natural experiment. Exposure to the BOG was established by triple differences measured by age group, survey period and whether child participants were living in BOG areas or not, respectively. Children’s growth was assessed by binary variables of stunting, underweight, overweight and obesity. The difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) method was used to estimate the association between the BOG and children’s growth.
Results
DDD estimates showed that the BOG was significantly associated with decreased risks of children’s underweight (OR 0.12; 95% CI 0.02 to 0.69) and overweight (OR 0.43; 95% CI 0.19 to 0.98) after controlling for multiple covariates in fractional polynomial models. There was significant sex heterogeneity with regard to the association between BOG and obesity, that is, lower odds of obesity (OR 0.24; 95% CI 0.06 to 0.94) were found in female children but not in male children.
Conclusion
The BOG was positively associated with healthier growth of children including decreased risks of both undernutrition and overnutrition. More attention should be given to the improvement of health surveillance and services before and after sporting events so that the active role of such mega-events in the lasting well-being of the public can be determined in more detail.
... Recent evidence that creating new or improving existing urban green and blue spaces (e.g., parks, rivers) (Hunter et al., 2019), transport infrastructure (e.g. walking/cycling corridors) (Cummins et al., 2018), and public spaces (e.g., urban squares) (Anderson et al., 2017), are promising interventions to enhance population HWB. Yet despite growing evidence and expertise in the field, the evidence base is severely underdeveloped (Benton et al., 2016;Hunter et al., 2019), partly due to the difficulties in measuring and quantifying HWB (Lee and Maheswaran, 2011;Benton et al., 2020). ...
Cities must address many challenges including air quality, climate change and the health and wellbeing of communities. Public authorities and developers increasingly look to improve these through the implementation of interventions and innovations, such as low traffic neighbourhoods, deep housing retrofits and green infrastructure. Monitoring the impacts of interventions is essential to determine the success of such projects and to build evidence for broader urban transformation. In this paper we present a mixed-method cross-disciplinary approach that brings together cutting edge atmospheric and data science, measurements of activity in public spaces and novel methods to assess wellbeing-promoting behaviours. The Manchester Urban Observatory focuses on living areas that have a high density of inter-related systems, which require observation, understanding and intervention at multiple levels. This must be completed in line with urban planning goals as well as a clear and succinct data solution that allows robust scientific conclusions to be made and viewed in real time. Delivery of such a monitoring strategy is not trivial and is time, resource and expertise heavy. This paper discusses the methods employed by the Manchester Urban Observatory to monitor the effectiveness off interventions implemented within cities and effective communication strategies with local communities.
... Failing to capture spatially specific and inclusive social SWB represent missed opportunities. For example, an evaluation relating to the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games, a deprived area that underwent considerable change to local social spaces, did not include a comprehensive assessment of social SWB [6]. ...
... For example, although there is likely overlap, physical health has several different causes to that of individual SWB [3], which is also likely be the case for social SWB. The London Olympics and Para Olympics were not found to have lasting impact on individual SWB or mental health, amongst local cohorts, however, it is not clear whether the same can be said of local social SWB [6]. This is important because local populations' social SWB may have a bearing on (a) the ability to react to challenges that require collective response (i.e. ...
Background
: Short individual Subjective Wellbeing (SWB) survey instruments are increasingly used to measure the impact of policy and community health initiatives. Neighbourhood-level interventions should affect social SWB, where intervention impact relates to a geographically bounded area. Existing social SWB measures lack spatial focus and have not been tested with low literacy users. The objective of the study was to develop and validate a short and inclusive neighbourhood flourishing tool.
Methods
: Five key stages, started with conceptualisation built on recent reviews and a community survey. Second, a set of survey items were operationalised. Third, cognitive interviews with six low education readers refined and reduced the pool. Fourth, these items plus new and established measures of SWB and predictors of both, were tested with 292 participants and subject to psychometric analyses. Fifth, the nine strongest items were validated in two deprived UK neighbourhoods with a further 221 participants and subjected to readability formulas.
Results
: Initial work revealed 12 relevant concepts and 101 survey items assessing these were developed. Approximately half the new short items were acceptable in ‘think aloud’ interviews (n=6). Two rounds of completion of items revealed a 2-factor solution consisting of neighbourhood feelings and functionings. The final solution consisted of three high loading items assessing feelings (safety, trust and respect) and three items assessing functionings (celebration, autonomy and participation), that did not cross-load, and demonstrated predictive and discriminant validity. Based on eight reading score formulas, the final measure was found to suit a reading age of 12-14 years old.
Conclusion
: The new valid six-item measure was tested with 519 participants, is acceptable and usable with people from deprived neighbourhoods, and with evidence of validity. This is a robust practical and inclusive tool for the measurement of Neighbourhood Flourishing, relevant to urban regeneration, inequalities and climate change policy and research.
... The only study that used a longitudinal design was the ORiEL study, aimed at evaluating the impact of the urban regeneration associated with the London 2012 Olympic Games (UK) on adolescent physical activity, mental health and well-being (Smith et al. 2012). After 18 months of follow-up, no differences were found in physical activity between adolescents living in the intervention borough (where the majority of urban regeneration activities took place) as compared to those living in comparison boroughs (Cummins et al. 2018). Urban regeneration and the Olympic Games had no impact on depressed persons, and on well-being. ...
... The finding that sport events with the more explicit aim to target sport participation were followed by an increase in sport-specific participation is a novel finding. Existing evidence showed little impact of multi-sport events such as the Olympic and Paralympic Games on sport participation and physical activity (Weed et al. 2009, McCartney et al. 2010, Cummins et al. 2018, Annear et al. 2019. Mega-events may be less (financially) accessible by the host population. ...
... The ORiEL study is the only study to date that evaluated the sport legacy of the London Games in 2012 by following people over time, but did not find evidence of an impact on adolescents physical activity, mental health or well-being (Cummins et al. 2018). Qualitative research revealed that health was less of a priority in relatively deprived areas in which the study was conducted than more immediate concerns such as employment, safety and housing. ...
Increasing sport participation by hosting elite sport events is a much-debated policy. This study evaluated the effect of hosting elite sport events on sport participation against the background of a shift in focus towards targeting recreational sport participation. We included 10 international elite sport events organised between 2000 and 2017 in the city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Sport-specific participation in the pastyear was obtained from abiannual cross-sectional survey. Per event, interrupted time series analyses were employed using 3 pre-and post-event measures. Data were summarised by means of random-effects meta-analyses. We tested for group differences to evaluate if events organised in the period with amore explicit aim to target recreational sport participation, and associated policies, had a larger impact. Three events concerning cycling, table tennis and gymnastics were followed by an increase in sport-specific participation 1-year after the event was organised, whereas the korfball event was followed by adecrease. The pooled effect of the 10 events did not show any change in sport-specific participation (0.2%-point (95% CI: −0.3; 0.8)). Significant group differences by period were found. More recent events targeting sport participation were followed by an increase in sport-specific participation (1.1%-point (95% CI: 0.0; 2.1)), but not for other events (−0.3%-point (95% CI: −0.6; 0.1)). No group differences were found for the number of visitors and location. Hosting elite sport events that explicitly target sport participation may increase sport participation among citizens. Longitudinal data following individuals over time are needed to support this finding.
... They found no effect of urban regeneration on self-reported MENTAL HEALTH, WELL-BEING AND NEIGHBOURHOOD PERCEPTIONS NIHR Journals Library www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk physical activity, mental health and well-being outcomes after 18 months, and repeated cross-sectional surveys among 995 parents suggested that levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms might have increased as opposed to decreased in Newham, compared with control areas. 217 In summary, the effects of urban regeneration on mental health-related outcomes appears modest at best and mixed, not applying equally across population groups. Our finding that moving to East Village did not have any sizeable effect on mental health/well-being-related outcomes is entirely consistent with these studies, suggesting that more needs to be done to demonstrate the effect of change in the local environment on mental health and well-being, and to understand why greater differences are not observed. ...
... 227 In terms of a health legacy, studies have failed to find sustained health improvements in the area. 217,230,231 Although several studies have examined the effect of the Games on residents of the Olympics boroughs, there has been relatively little research examining the views of residents of the new East Village. The Speaking Out of Place project 232 interviewed tenants from the social, intermediate and market-rent groups in East Village, in addition to individuals with a community role in East Village and residents from neighbouring areas. ...
Background
Low physical activity is widespread and poses a serious public health challenge both globally and in the UK. The need to increase population levels of physical activity is recognised in current health policy recommendations. There is considerable interest in whether or not the built environment influences health behaviours, particularly physical activity levels, but longitudinal evidence is limited.
Objectives
The effect of moving into East Village (the former London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Athletes’ Village, repurposed on active design principles) on the levels of physical activity and adiposity, as well as other health-related and well-being outcomes among adults, was examined.
Design
The Examining Neighbourhood Activities in Built Environments in London (ENABLE London) study was a longitudinal cohort study based on a natural experiment.
Setting
East Village, London, UK.
Participants
A cohort of 1278 adults (aged ≥ 16 years) and 219 children seeking to move into social, intermediate and market-rent East Village accommodation were recruited in 2013–15 and followed up after 2 years.
Intervention
The East Village neighbourhood, the former London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Athletes’ Village, is a purpose-built, mixed-use residential development specifically designed to encourage healthy active living by improving walkability and access to public transport.
Main outcome measure
Change in objectively measured daily steps from baseline to follow-up.
Methods
Change in environmental exposures associated with physical activity was assessed using Geographic Information System-derived measures. Individual objective measures of physical activity using accelerometry, body mass index and bioelectrical impedance (per cent of fat mass) were obtained, as were perceptions of change in crime and quality of the built environment. We examined changes in levels of physical activity and adiposity using multilevel models adjusting for sex, age group, ethnic group, housing sector (fixed effects) and baseline household (random effect), comparing the change in those who moved to East Village (intervention group) with the change in those who did not move to East Village (control group). Effects of housing sector (i.e. social, intermediate/affordable, market-rent) as an effect modifier were also examined. Qualitative work was carried out to provide contextual information about the perceived effects of moving to East Village.
Results
A total of 877 adults (69%) were followed up after 2 years (mean 24 months, range 19–34 months, postponed from 1 year owing to the delayed opening of East Village), of whom 50% had moved to East Village; insufficient numbers of children moved to East Village to be considered further. In adults, moving to East Village was associated with only a small, non-significant, increase in mean daily steps (154 steps, 95% confidence interval –231 to 539 steps), more so in the intermediate sector (433 steps, 95% confidence interval –175 to 1042 steps) than in the social and market-rent sectors (although differences between housing sectors were not statistically significant), despite sizeable improvements in walkability, access to public transport and neighbourhood perceptions of crime and quality of the built environment. There were no appreciable effects on time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity or sedentary time, body mass index or percentage fat mass, either overall or by housing sector. Qualitative findings indicated that, although participants enjoyed their new homes, certain design features might actually serve to reduce levels of activity.
Conclusions
Despite strong evidence of large positive changes in neighbourhood perceptions and walkability, there was only weak evidence that moving to East Village was associated with increased physical activity. There was no evidence of an effect on markers of adiposity. Hence, improving the physical activity environment on its own may not be sufficient to increase population physical activity or other health behaviours.
Funding
This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Public Health Research programme and will be published in full in Public Health Research ; Vol. 8, No. 12. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information. This research was also supported by project grants from the Medical Research Council National Prevention Research Initiative (MR/J000345/1).
... They found no effect of urban regeneration on self-reported physical activity, mental health and well-being outcomes after 18 months, and repeated cross-sectional surveys among 995 parents suggested that levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms might have increased rather than decreased in Newham, compared with control areas. 32 Although there is considerable enthusiasm for the potential of the built environment to promote mental health and well-being, to date the evidence appears to be either null or modest at best. The proposed pathways through which the built environment may affect mental health and well-being are complex with direct and indirect pathways, 33 and there is limited high-quality evidence available to establish causality. ...
Background
Neighbourhood characteristics may affect mental health and well-being, but longitudinal evidence is limited. We examined the effect of relocating to East Village (the former London 2012 Olympic Athletes’ Village), repurposed to encourage healthy active living, on mental health and well-being.
Methods
1278 adults seeking different housing tenures in East village were recruited and examined during 2013–2015. 877 (69%) were followed-up after 2 years; 50% had moved to East Village. Analysis examined change in objective measures of the built environment, neighbourhood perceptions (scored from low to high; quality −12 to 12, safety −10 to 10 units), self-reported mental health (depression and anxiety) and well-being (life satisfaction, life being worthwhile and happiness) among East Village participants compared with controls who did not move to East Village. Follow-up measures were regressed on baseline for each outcome with group status as a binary variable, adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, housing tenure and household clustering (random effect).
Results
Participants who moved to East Village lived closer to their nearest park (528 m, 95% CI 482 to 575 m), in more walkable areas, and had better access to public transport, compared with controls. Living in East Village was associated with marked improvements in neighbourhood perceptions (quality 5.0, 95% CI 4.5 to 5.4 units; safety 3.4, 95% CI 2.9 to 3.9 units), but there was no overall effect on mental health and well-being outcomes.
Conclusion
Despite large improvements in the built environment, there was no evidence that moving to East Village improved mental health and well-being. Changes in the built environment alone are insufficient to improve mental health and well-being.
