BackFitter for Walking Standard Awarded
PHOTOCALL: Wednesday 03 February, 09.35 am, Tipton Swimming Centre, Queens Road, Tipton, DY4 8ND
Burnt Tree Children’s Centre, which provides advice and support to families alongside quality childcare and training opportunities to parents and carers is to be awarded with the ‘Fitter for Walking Standard’ following a successful project which aimed to encourage a healthy lifestyle through regular walking.
National charity Living Streets launched the Fitter for Walking project in Sandwell in 2008 to help residents create streets they can be proud of. With funding from the Big Lottery Fund and in partnership with Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council and Primary Care Trust, project coordinator Hema Kasi-Patel has been working closely with Burnt Tree Children’s Centre and will be presenting them with the Fitter for Walking Standard on Wednesday 03 February. The Fitter for Walking Standard will be awarded for the work that the children’s centre has done in engaging with the local community and increasing local walking levels through their organised weekly walks in the local area.
The walks, which were launched last May, have been a huge success, with local participants stating that taking part has made them feel less isolated, more confident about walking locally with their children and has introduced them to services such as the library and sports centre which they may not have visited previously. With regular attendance and commitment by the centre, Sandwell Primary Care Trust has incorporated these walks into their borough wide Sandwell Strides Walking for Health programme and helps to promote the walks by advertising them.
The Fitter for Walking project is part of a group of projects that will be helping 2 million people nationwide become more physically active, by regularly walking or cycling as part of their daily lives. Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council and Sandwell Primary Care Trust are official partners in the Fitter for Walking project – a fantastic move that shows they are eager to work together with Living Streets and residents to improve their streets and encourage people to get walking locally. This partnership approach is vital in making sure that the project can make a real difference over the four year duration. Groups signed up to the Fitter for Walking project all have a chance of receiving the Fitter for Walking Standard and Burnt Tree Children’s Centre has made excellent progress in increasing the amount of walking within the group.
Tony Armstrong, Chief Executive of Living Streets, said:
“Burnt Tree Children’s Centre is being awarded the Fitter for Walking Standard for the progress they have made as a group towards maintaining a sustainable healthy lifestyle through regular walking. We really hope that this is the start of a regular walking habit for all involved, and that it encourages more people to get out and enjoy their neighbourhood on foot.
“When more people in an area are walking regularly, it doesn’t just help them get healthy; it means roads are less congested, we are all breathing in less pollution, and neighbours see each other on the streets and feel more of a community.”
Any community groups interested in taking part in the Fitter for Walking project should contact Hema Kasi Patel on 07595 781875 or by emailing hema.kasi-patel@livingstreets.org.uk
ENDS
If you would like to find out more information, to send a photographer to the presentation of the Fitter for Walking Standard, please contact Anna Powell, Press Officer at anna.powell@livingstreets.org.uk , tel: 020 7377 4914. For any out of hours press enquiries, please call 07545 209866.
Notes to editors
Living Streets’ Fitter for Walking campaign is part of a portfolio of projects being delivered by a Consortium of the leading walking cycling and health organisations and funded through the Big Lottery Fund's Wellbeing Programme. The Programme provides funding to support the development of healthier lifestyles and to improve well-being.
The Consortium is led by Sustrans and includes British Cycling, CTC, Cycling England, Living Streets, London Cycling Campaign, the National Heart Forum, the National Obesity Forum, the Ramblers’ Association, Campaign for Better Transport and Walk 21. It is delivering a portfolio of projects that will enable two million people nationwide to become more physically active by walking or cycling as part of their daily lives by 2012.
The Big Lottery Fund, the largest of the National Lottery good cause distributors, has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK since its inception in June 2004.
Living Streets, is the national charity that stands up for pedestrians. With our supporters we campaign to create safe, attractive and enjoyable streets, where people want to walk.
We have been the national voice for pedestrians throughout our 80 year history. In the early years, our campaigning led to the introduction of the driving test, pedestrian crossings and 30mph speed limits. Since then our ambition has grown. Today we influence decision makers nationally and locally, run successful projects to encourage people to walk, and provide specialist consultancy services to help reduce congestion and carbon emissions, improve public health, and make sure every community can enjoy vibrant streets and public spaces.
Published on: 29/01/2010
