This year, Reed Wellbeing is marking 10 years of delivering the Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme. Reed Wellbeing Director Nick Hughes reflects on a decade of national diabetes prevention work:
For over 10 years Reed Wellbeing has been a trusted delivery partner for population health improvement – combining national scale with local responsiveness. From the early rollout of behaviour change programmes to today’s complex, integrated prevention pathways, our work has been defined by one consistent mission: to deliver high quality support to the people who need it most, when they need it in order that they can lead a healthier life.
As healthcare priorities have evolved, Reed Wellbeing has continually adapted – refining our operational models, expanding our footprint and responding quickly to emerging needs across systems and communities.
Delivering prevention at scale through Healthier You
A cornerstone of our impact has our longstanding association with delivering NHS England’s Healthier You programmes across multiple parts of the country.
We have delivered services from a growing network of locations, operating across urban, suburban and rural settings, and adapting delivery models to meet local population needs. This includes effective partnerships with Primary Care Networks, ICSs, local authorities and community organisations that enable our support to reach into underserved groups.
At scale, Reed Wellbeing has implemented and delivered:
NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NDPP)
Type 2 Diabetes Remission (T2DR) Programme
Behavioural Support for Obesity Prescribing (BSOP)
Long Term Conditions Prevention (LTCP) Programme
Each of these interventions have delivered both face-to-face and digitally, supporting national ambitions for access, equity and prevention and the local needs of our participant groups.
We have now delivered an impactful, clinically proven NDPP service that has addressed lifestyle issues causing obesity and pre-diabetic blood sugar levels in more than 179,000 people across ten different areas of England.
Efficient implementation and operational maturity
One of Reed Wellbeing’s distinguishing strengths has been the speed and reliability of implementation at scale.
Across multiple service mobilisations, we have consistently demonstrated:
Rapid go-live timeframes
High referral conversion rates
Strong programme completion and participant engagement
Robust workforce training and clinical governance
Our operational efficiency has allowed NHS England and Integrated Care Boards to respond quickly to policy shifts and emerging evidence – whether piloting new cohorts, expanding eligibility criteria or embedding new digital and hybrid pathways at pace.
This capability has been especially evident during periods of heightened system pressure, like the Covid-19 pandemic, when we maintained service continuity while adapting delivery models to remain accessible and inclusive.
Responding to emerging needs: from lifestyle support to medical innovation
As the national conversation around obesity and diabetes has evolved, we have followed evidenced-based innovations to enhance our support.
Alongside behavioural and lifestyle interventions, we have engaged constructively with the emergence of weight loss medications and injections, recognising their growing role within the NHS obesity care pathway. Reed Wellbeing’s position has consistently been that medication can be a useful adjunct, but not a replacement for sustainable behaviour change, psychological support and self-management skills
Our services are well placed to complement pharmacological approaches – supporting participants before, during and after medical interventions to maximise outcomes and minimise relapse.
Participation, engagement and outcomes
Across all Healthier You programmes, Reed Wellbeing has supported large‑scale participation while maintaining a strong focus on outcomes that matter to individuals and systems alike.
At a high level, our services have demonstrated:
Strong enrolment and sustained engagement across programmes
Meaningful average weight loss among programme completers
Improvements in HbA1c, physical activity and wellbeing measures
High participant satisfaction and confidence in continuation
To date, Reed Wellbeing has supported over 179,000 participants across prevention and weight management services. On average, participants completing the programmes achieve 3.47% (-3.0kg) bodyweight reduction at nine months. Our completion rates consistently meet or exceed national performance benchmarks.
Looking ahead
Ten years on, Reed Wellbeing is eager to play its role in the next phase of population health delivery. Integrated care, personalised prevention, and blended medical behavioural pathways will continue to shape services – and our experience delivering at scale, while remaining rooted in local communities, will remain central to our approach.
As emerging needs continue to evolve, Reed Wellbeing’s track record shows not just the ability to deliver – but to adapt, learn and lead.