The Alliance connects national and local organisations so they can share ideas, learn from each other, and help shape policy.
We believe that being active can really help mental health. Moving more can build resilience, improve wellbeing, and support recovery. But physical activity is not a complete solution on its own. It should be used alongside other types of support, like medication, talking therapies, and community care, with the person’s needs at the centre.
For some people, physical activity can also be difficult or harmful. The Alliance works to make sure its services, resources, and campaigns reflect people’s real experiences.
Our members:
- Mind
- Sport England
- Chasing the Stigma / Hub of Hope
- DOCIA Sports
- Edge Hill University / Centre for Mental Health, Sport and Physical Activity Research (CMSPR)
- The Foundation for Young People’s Mental Health
- Loose Headz
- Mental Health Football Wales
- Mental Health Foundation
- Mind Over Mountains
- Movember
- MyoMinds
- Opening Up Cricket
- Rainbow Mind
- Red Together
- Rethink Mental Illness
- Rugby League Cares
- Scottish Action for Mental Health
- Sport in Mind
- State of Mind Sport
- Staysafe UK
- Stormbreak
- Tackling Awareness of Mental Health Issue (TAMHI)
- The Movement Charity
- The Running Charity
What we do
The Alliance is all about working together and learning from each other. We:
- Share what’s working well, including evidence, learning and examples of good practice, while openly talking about the challenges we face.
- Support Mind and Sport England’s plans for using physical activity to help mental health through prevention, treatment and recovery.
- Help change things in our own organisations and in the wider health system.
- Give advice to others in the sector.
- Speak up in campaigns, reports, and events to share key messages.
What the Mental Health and Movement Alliance will achieve
We have two core aims:
- Embed physical activity across the mental health sector, including in mental health pathways. This means encouraging mental health organisations and services to recognise movement as a valuable part of support and recovery.
- Embed mental health understanding across the sport and physical activity sector. This means helping physical activity providers to deliver their work in ways that are safe, inclusive, and informed by good mental health practice.
Our call for change: Change through movement
Our call sets out the role community-based physical activity and movement can play in supporting mental health as part of great mental health care. Drawing on evidence and lived experience, it offers practical recommendations to help embed movement across prevention, treatment and recovery in ways that are safe and effective, genuinely improving mental health outcomes.
This call for change sets out 5 policy asks:
- Commissioners and funders ringfence funding for evidence-based physical activity services.
- Embed physical activity across mental health pathways for children, young people and adults.
- Integrate physical activity knowledge into mental healthcare professional training and development.
- Apply safe and effective practice to all physical activity delivered to people with mental health problems.
- Recognise sport and physical activity providers as trusted partners in great mental health care.
Why movement matters
Movement can be a great way to support our mental health and wellbeing, but we know it isn’t always easy to get moving. This can be especially true when we’re experiencing a mental health problem. The Mental Health and Movement Alliance worked with Sport England to create a short animation. It explains what happens in our bodies and brains when we move, and why even small amounts of movement can help us feel better.
Contact us
If you want to get in touch with Mind's sport and physical activity team, you can send us an email.