BARNSLEY Council has revealed the results of a year of active travel events, funding and engagement in schools encouraging Barnsley residents to enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle.
Across the borough, 83 per cent of primary schools are engaged in active travel sessions, including walking, cycling and scooting, with 5,633 children involved in our active travel delivery and a further 2,356 children taking part in our community RampUp sessions.
Aside from working with schools to get Barnsley’s youngsters moving, our Game Changer programme and Wellbeing Walks have helped the wider communities to get active too.
The Game Changer sessions in Kendray and Worsbrough saw 886 people attend, with 75 per cent of those being previously inactive before taking part.
Over 1,000 people attended 314 Wellbeing Walks and more than 200 activities are currently on offer as part of the Barnsley Walking Festival, which promotes incorporating walking into your daily routine to improve both your physical and mental health.
The last year has also seen significant investment in facilities in the town with more than £4.6 million of funding awarded.
Both the Metrodome and Dearneside Leisure Centre were awarded £400k and £210k respectively from Sport England’s Swimming Pool Support Fund, while over £2.5 million was secured for the Parkside Community and Sports Centre.
Coun James Higginbottom, Cabinet Spokesperson for Environment and Highways, said: “Leading a healthy and active lifestyle is important for us all as it helps us to move more, live well and feel better.
“The work of our Sport and Physical Activity team over the last year has helped many of our residents to get moving in a variety of ways.
“It’s been fantastic to see the level of engagement from the different age groups across the town, from primary school children to over 65s. We’re also continuing to invest so we can maintain and improve our sport and leisure facilities, which offer a wide variety of options for our residents to participate in physical activity, and develop the right infrastructure to make active travel more accessible.
“With 1,400 places for the Barnsley 10k race already sold out, the return of Barnsley’s Big Weekend and our RampUP sessions continuing throughout the summer, I’m sure this year will be just as successful as the previous 12 months.”