Employers in Barnsley can look after the heart health of their staff thanks to an ongoing public health campaign.

How’s Thi Ticker is a partnership between Barnsley Council’s public health team and Barnsley Premier Leisure to offer free workplace heart health checks.

Their friendly team of advisors are going around Barnsley measuring a wide range of health indicators such as blood pressure, cholesterol levels and BMI. They’ll cut through the jargon and explain your readings to you in a heartbeat.

Since its launch in June 2022, How’s Thi Ticker has delivered more than 8,000 free blood pressure checks, popping up everywhere from barbershops to local businesses.

The checks can help businesses identify potential health risks among employees, allowing them to take appropriate action to minimise any risks.

The campaign team can also give advice about improving employees’ health and wellbeing, whether that’s increasing physical activity, making healthy food choices, or being signposted to appropriate health services.

Why it’s important to check your blood pressure

Your arteries are normally stretchy so they can cope with your blood pressure going up and down. But with high blood pressure, your arteries lose their stretchiness, becoming stiff or narrow. This narrowing makes it easier for fatty material to build up. If this happens to the arteries lining your heart or brain it could trigger a life-threatening heart attack or stroke. 

High blood pressure usually has no warning signs or symptoms, and many people do not know they have it.

If you’d like the team to visit your workplace please email howsthiticker@barnsley.gov.uk.