Congratulations to Kim Roberts, Chief Executive of HENRY, who has been awarded an MBE for Services to Childhood Obesity Prevention in the King’s Birthday Honours.

This honour recognises Kim’s 12-year leadership of HENRY, growing what was a small and newly-registered charity in 2010 to the national success story it is today – working in over 80 local authorities across all four nations of the UK. Above all, it recognises HENRY’s ground-breaking work in transforming traditional approaches to obesity prevention and creating the conditions for positive change. In 2021, the World Obesity Forum included HENRY as the sole UK case study. 

On receiving the award, Kim said:

“I am honoured to receive this award, but I share it with the inspirational, skilled and dedicated HENRY team, who transform the lives of children and their families on a daily basis.

We know that families want the best start in life for their children - and yet the odds are stacked against children growing up in the most deprived areas. By building trusting relationships and working in partnership with parents, we help them develop the emotional resources, confidence, skills and knowledge to provide a healthy family lifestyle for their children.”  

She added:

“Our early years really do last a lifetime. By helping the whole family to lead a healthier lifestyle, HENRY has enabled a brighter future for many thousands of children.”

97% of families who join a HENRY family programme report greater emotional wellbeing and closer family relationships, as well as developing healthier eating and activity habits. In Leeds, where HENRY is embedded as part of the city-wide child healthy weight strategy, rates of child obesity at age 5 fell by 10% in the most deprived areas – showing it is possible to close the inequality gap.

In the words of one parent:

“I honestly don’t know where we’d be without HENRY. We are all so much happier and healthier, and we’re looking forward to our lives together as a family.”

HENRY provides a wide range of support for families from pregnancy to age 12, including workshops, programmes, resources and online help – as well as training for practitioners working with families.