This keynote brings together eminent professors in Walking for Health, Professors Nanette Mutrie and Marie Murphy, and Walking Scotland to explore a decade of progress in making walking and wheeling a more accessible part of everyday life for women and girls in Scotland. 

Drawing on ten years of research, the session will explore what we have learned about the physical, mental and social benefits of walking, how this evidence has influenced national and international policy, and how policy has been translated into action. Walking Scotland will bring the story into practice, sharing how its Walking Network, Walking Schools and Walking Environments programmes are creating safer, more accessible and more welcoming opportunities for women and girls to walk and wheel more. Personal stories from young people, new mothers and community members will bring the evidence and impact to life, illustrating what this progress means in people’s everyday lives. 

The session will look ahead to the next decade, reflecting on what the journey so far can teach us about bringing research, policy and practice together to create lasting opportunities for women and girls to walk and wheel more. 

This keynote will explore how economic evidence can help demonstrate the value of physical activity and support investment decisions at a time of severe financial pressure on local authorities and a growing policy emphasis on prevention.  

The session will examine the gap between the national evidence base and the practical needs of local commissioners, exploring why economic evidence is not always used to inform local funding decisions. It will consider the outcomes that matter, from short-term measures through to longer-term health benefits and potential cost savings, and how these can be measured and modelled. Prof. Kathleen Boyd will provide an overview of approaches to economic evaluation, drawing on recent examples in her own work and in physical activity to explore what decision-makers want from economic evidence and how it can be presented in ways that are meaningful and actionable.  

The session will close by considering the challenge of balancing methodological rigour with the practical realities of evaluating physical activity programmes in real-world settings.