Nordic walking is a form of exercise that utilises specially designed poles to improve your natural walking ability. By distributing the effort between the upper and lower body, walking with poles feels less strenuous than regular walking, especially when going uphill. This type of exercise is gentle on the joints, making it suitable for individuals with mobility limitations or those in the process of recovering from injuries. Additionally, Nordic walking offers numerous health advantages, including heightened energy levels, enhanced muscle strength, improved cardiovascular and respiratory health, and the ability to address medical conditions like heart disease, dementia, stress, and obesity.
The objective of this initiative is to establish Nordic walking communities throughout London, with a focus on engaging individuals who are typically underrepresented in walking due to various factors such as health, culture, ability, and access to information or equipment. These walks, which typically span 1-2 hours, can be conducted in any neighbourhood or park, encompassing serene streets and verdant areas. All participants will be furnished with walking poles, and it is recommended that they wear comfortable footwear like walking boots or trainers.
The project will be led by a paid walk leader initially and then volunteers will be identified and trained to continue the project as walk leaders. Walks will be planned by the walk leader and delivered fortnightly or monthly. As volunteers become trained as walk leaders, walks can take place on a more regular basis, for example weekly or twice weekly. The walks will start and end in one location, for example, a school or community centre. This will enable participants to become familiar with walking routes from this location and in the surrounding area. As walks become more frequent, additional locations can be added throughout the borough and London to enable the group to expand and explore new areas.
Target audience and engagement
- The primary target audience for this project is older people, minority ethnic participants, people with a long-term illness, and those who are traditionally under-represented in walking activities
- A secondary target audience would be refugees and asylum seekers, disadvantaged, and all of those who are traditionally under-represented in walking activities. Barriers would need to be addressed to ensure these target beneficiaries participate
- Target audience recruited via your organisation’s current membership (if applicable), community partners, other local charities and organisations, local NHS health facilities
Reach
- Medium (50 participants each year)
- Geographically - anywhere
Equipment needed
- Nordic walking poles (one pair per participant)
- Hi-Vis jackets/vests
- First aid kits (and refills)
Resources needed
-Project Leader
- Form relationships with local organisations, NHS facilities etc. to recruit participants
- Oversee project and ensure all funding criteria and documentation is met
- Run risk assessment for safeguarding, injuries and identify any other concerns which may affect project delivery (a Risk Assessment template is available on the Resources page here)
- Ensure health & safety, and safeguarding policies are in place, robust, and adhered to
- Gather feedback from participants
-Nordic Walk Leader
- Run the Nordic walking sessions
- Ensure participants feel confident and well looked-after
- Must be a qualified and experienced instructor, preferably with experience working with the target audience
-Volunteers
- Help participants with the sessions and provide encouragement
- Contribute to overseeing activity and potentially fix any equipment issues
- Eventually overtake one instructor’s role to reduce the overall cost of the project
- Training opportunities for participants to become volunteers
-Storage Space
- You will need somewhere to store equipment. This could be at a community centre, in an existing office, or perhaps another local business that has a storage facility
-Publicity
- Flyers and posters for publicity of the sessions
- Social media advertising (if appropriate)
Estimated project costs
- Nordic walking instructor (£150/day x 20 days) - £3000
- Project manager and admin - £800
- Nordic walking poles (£22 x 25 pairs) - £550
- DBS checks for leaders and volunteers - £150
- Printing and publicity - £200
- First aid kit - £40
- His-Vis jackets/vests - £80
- Storage facility - £150
Top tips/key learnings
- Engage with and listen to every participant; they will provide valuable insights into how you can improve your project
- Walks and activities should be planned to adapt to participant needs, offering options for less active participants or those who are initially harder to engage
- Revise risk assessments of the activities at intermittent points to ensure activities run safely and more smoothly
- Take advantage of the training programme that is offered by Walking and Cycling Grants London
Maximising local contacts
- Engage with any existing community networks you may have to recruit participants
- Utilise networks to get in-kind support (volunteer organisations and local centres, community centres, schools etc.)
This idea has been influenced and developed from multiple WCGL projects. If you decide to run your own version of this project in your community, please email us at wcgl@groundwork.org.uk. We love to hear that we are inspiring people to walk and cycle.