Local health professionals encourage public to act now on type 2 diabetes

This Diabetes Prevention Week (26 May – 1 June 2025), health professionals at NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin (NHS STW) are encouraging residents to use two free support programmes to help reduce the risk of complications related to type 2 diabetes.

With 772,683 adults living with type 2 diabetes in the Midlands, and an estimated 6.3 million people in the UK at an increased risk, NHS STW is highlighting the services offered locally to help prevent or even reverse type 2 diabetes through positive lifestyle changes.

The NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NDPP), provided locally by Living Well Taking Control, supports people who are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The programme helps participants lead healthier lives by focusing on weight loss, increasing physical activity, and making healthier food choices.

For people already living with type 2 diabetes, and who are overweight or living with obesity, the NHS type 2 diabetes Path to Remission Programme (T2DR), delivered by Counterweight, offers a clinically proven treatment option designed to support remission. Delivered in partnership with NHS England and Diabetes UK, the service includes a 12-week total diet replacement using nutritionally complete meal replacements, followed by food reintroduction and weight maintenance phases.

Peter Shorrick, Head of Midlands and East of England, Diabetes UK, said: “Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition, but the good news is that it is often preventable and, in many cases, reversible.

“Prevention is a large part of the work we do, and these two programmes offer people across our communities real, practical support – whether that’s helping to stop the condition from developing in the first place to supporting those already diagnosed to make lasting, life-changing improvements.

“The public response to a recent survey led by NHS STW, about ways to improve care for those at risk of developing diabetes, will help us develop these services across the county. We received over 400 responses, and I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who took the time to complete this and share with us their thoughts and experiences.

“This Diabetes Prevention Week, if I can encourage people to do one think it would be to use the Know Your Risk tool, to check your risk of developing diabetes, or to speak to a GP about getting referred to one of our programmes.”