Bracknell

Health MOTs made sure Bracknell Forest residents were raring to go as part of the service on offer during Health Action Day on Friday (June 29).

Residents from across the Bracknell borough were offered the chance to make sure their health was tip-top as part of a free health MOT by health promotion nurses while members of Bracknell Forest Borough Council's intermediate care team were on hand to offer elderly residents the chance to find out about independent living and fall prevention.

The event, which was a joint project between the Council and Berkshire East Primary Care Trust, also gave residents of all ages the chance to find out more about exercise, healthy eating and how to lead a fit and healthy lifestyle.

As part of the day, held at Priestwood Community Centre, there was also the chance for the borough's older residents to find out about how they could avoid falls - which often impair health - and how new technological advances in fall alarms and detectors could help them maintain their independence and allow them to be safe in the knowledge that help would be available if they did fall and need support.

The Bracknell event was held in the same week as National Falls Awareness Day (Tuesday, June 26) to provide extra help and advice to elderly residents about how to avoid falls and what to do if they did fall.

Glyn Jones, Assistant Director of Community Care, said: "Providing advice and information to all residents about how to lead a healthy lifestyle is important. Health Action Day was a way of providing that information and allowing residents to ask the experts any questions they might have had.

"The intermediate care team were also on hand to provide elderly residents with all the information they needed on how fall detectors and alarms work and can help them lead an independent life but with the knowledge that help is just around the corner if they should fall."

Catherine Bray, a Physiotherapist working for Berkshire East Primary Care Trust, said: "Falls are not an inevitable part of aging. Everyone can actively improve their strength and balance."

Bracknell Forest Borough Council