A partnership with Southern NSW Local Health District's Go4Fun program means that children in Queanbeyan will have the opportunity to learn from the champion marathon runner.

Mr de Castella has also recently received a grant of about $9000 from the Commonwealth Bank. He said the money will assist the program in reaching more children and providing work for the 10 contractors employed by SmartStart.

A lack of funding has meant the program could not be operated within the ACT. But Mr de Castella said he hopes a planned partnership with Medicare Local for next year will change this and allow renewed funding from ACT Health.

During SmartStart's 13 years in the ACT, the program helped students in more than 20 schools to overcome childhood obesity.

The Go4Fun program in Queanbeyan will offer another opportunity to teach children and their parents about making better lifestyle choices.

''Children get the chance to participate in games and activities in a safe and non-threatening environment which builds their confidence to be more physically active outside of the program,'' he said.

''The program also teaches the children and their parents how to make healthier choices when it comes to meals and snacks.''

Parents must be proactive in volunteering their children for the NSW Go4Fun program, with a number of candidates having already expressed their interest.

''We can provide them with a similar program to what we were proposing in the ACT,'' Mr de Castella said.

''The program was evaluated by the University of Canberra and statistics showed significant improvement. We know it works.''

Mr de Castella is committed to helping children and their families, and with extra funding hopes to expand the operations within the ACT.

Obesity is a widespread problem in the ACT, leading a new program Healthy Canberra Grants to provide $2.1 million in 2014 to community groups working to reduce obesity.