The role of exercise in mens secure mental health services
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A qualitative exploration of the role of exercise, including the barriers and facilitators to exercise engagement, in men’s secure mental health services.
IRAS ID
350475
Contact name
Nicole Savvas
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Birmingham
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 4 months, 0 days
Research summary
Poor physical and mental health is a national crisis in the UK. Physical exercise has long been recognised as a crucial component of mental health management, offering a range of benefits. Individuals residing in inpatient mental health settings, particularly on secure wards, often face increased restrictions; pharmacological interventions; sedentary behaviours; obesity; chronic physical health conditions; and poor diets. This can impact on engagement in therapeutic activities which aim to promote recovery and improve one’s overall health and quality of life. The average length of stay in secure services are lengthy, often perceived as maintaining the issues above. However, this also provides a great opportunity to implement sustainable changes in lifestyle behaviours with daily tailored support from professionals.
This research project aims to address a significant gap in the literature which exists for the role of exercise in secure mental health services. Specifically, this will focus on secure male wards due to the increased level of engagement in exercise regimes compared to female populations.
Considering the unique challenges of this population, the findings of this study have the potential to inform the development of interventions that promote physical activity and improve mental health and recovery outcomes for men in secure mental health settings. The findings can contribute to policy and procedure development, service development, and care planning to increase engagement in physical exercise. Enhancing exercise participation in this population may improve mental health outcomes, and service user’s overall well-being and quality of life both during admission and post-discharge. This is likely to be protective, meaning it may decrease the likelihood of relapse.
Service users' data will be collected through semi-structured interviews with men residing on secure mental health wards. Service users will need to be engaging in at least one form of exercise once per week to participate in this study.
REC name
London - Camberwell St Giles Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/LO/0818
Date of REC Opinion
6 Jan 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion