Big Lottery Fund Green Gym Extended
10 September 2005
The original three year funding from the Big Lottery for the Green Gym project has been extended for a further two years, October 2005 – end September 2007. Conservation Volunteers are delighted with this development which also sees the number of Health Trusts making financial commitment to the Green Gym increase from one to four in just three years. It is thanks to the strong working partnerships developed over the first three years of the Green Gym that have resulted in this very positive Big Lottery and Health Trust support.
The Big Lottery is an independent organisation set up by Parliament to distribute money raised by the National Lottery to support charities and voluntary and community groups throughout the UK. Their aim is to award grants to help meet the needs of those at greatest disadvantage in society and also to improve the quality of life of the community.
The Green Gym recognises that sustained health requires not only effective medical approaches but also healthy environments and healthy lifestyles. A key outcome of the Green Gym project is to change participants attitudes and lifestyles to undertake regular physical activity beyond the Green Gym.
Primarily targeting individuals based within Day Care Centres this Green Gym will work closely with individuals who traditionally have low physical activity levels, many have weight problems and have experienced different levels of social isolation as a result of their disability. Through involvement on the Green Gym, a regular practical based project, working as a team to achieve common goals, outcomes and long term changes to direct participants include:
- physical health
- mental health
- social interaction
- learning
- natural environment benefits
The Green Gym emphasises how easy it is to increase levels of physical activity in a country where 25% of the population are sedentary. These people are at increased risk of physical and mental health problems including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure.
For example, in Fermanagh Green Gym participants were equipped with pedometers, measuring how far people walked during a number of typical Green Gym sessions. An average of 4-5 miles per person per session was recorded. In a two year period since April 2002, a grand total of 21,400 miles have been walked by these Green Gymers – the equivalent of walking to Australia and back.
These next two years of the Big Lottery Fund Green Gym will be an exciting time for Conservation Volunteers. Targeting and including an increasing number of people this Green Gym looks to build confidence and skill levels of participants enabling them to integrate into additional Conservation Volunteers projects on a more independent basis.