A formative review of physical activity interventions for minority ethnic populations in England

Background: Physical activity (PA) levels are lower among some UK minority ethnic groups than the majority White British population. Barriers to participation have been examined and a variety of tailored interventions have emerged. This study documents the characteristics and logic of local adaptations; a vital first step in evaluating such innovations. Methods: 58 PA interventions from an English PA dataset were examined to establish the characteristics of programmes focussed on minority ethnic populations. From these 58, three case studies were examined to reveal the nature of tailoring and the logic underpinning it; employing documentary analysis and qualitative interviews. Results: Interventions typically aimed to improve both health and social outcomes, were largely publically and charitably funded and sought to engage the most inactive groups. Tailoring was based on six principles including using community resources to promote the intervention and accommodating varying degrees of cultural identification. Additionally, tailoring interventions were intended to build capacity for sustainability. Conclusions: PA interventions tailored to the needs of minority ethnic groups reflect their largely disadvantaged position in society and focus on addressing inactivity. Tailoring PA with the six principles in mind could be used as a useful framework for developing, designing and evaluating interventions for minority ethnic populations.