East Ayrshire Council are walking their way to a healthier lifestyle this national Walk to Work Week
14 May 2012 09:42:56
This May, people across the UK will be leaving their cars at home and taking to their feet in the Great British Walking Challenge. National Walk to Work Week (14-18) May is one event taking place during the month long challenge which encourages commuters to walk their way to a health lifestyle.
With the latest figures showing that a quarter of UK adults are now classified as obese and government figures showing that we jump in the car for over a fifth of journeys shorter than one mile, commuters in East Ayrshire are being urged to walk their way to a healthier lifestyle during national Walk to Work Week.
East Ayrshire Council will be taking part in Walk to Work Week and will be encouraging people to incorporate walking into their daily routine. During the week, employees will be encouraged to log their walking miles, whether its on the way to or from work, during their lunch break, or even as part of a walking meeting using a special online tool.
National charity Living Streets run the Walk to Work Campaign, funded by the Big Lottery Fund, to highlight the role that walking can play in bringing some much-needed activity into our daily lives.
The benefits of walking, for health, the environment and people’s pockets, are well documented. What’s often missing is the encouragement to make walking a regular part of people’s daily lives. Living Streets, supported by East Ayrshire Council aims to change this by encouraging people to incorporate walking into their daily routine and supporting them with tips, advice and motivation.
Notes to editors
The Great British Walking Challenge takes place in May, during Living Streets’ National Walking Month.
Living Streets will be encouraging people to walk throughout the month and will hold their two successful annual initiatives as part of the Great British Walking Challenge – Walk to Work Week (14-18 May) and Walk to School Week (21-25 May).
Be part of it. Register at www.livingstreets.org.uk.
Living Streets is the national charity that stands up for pedestrians. With our supporters we work 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.
Living Streets’ Walk to Work Campaign is part of a portfolio of projects being delivered by Travel Actively, a consortium of leading walking, cycling and health organisations committed to providing opportunities for 1.8 million people to become physically active through active travel by 2012.
The consortium is funded with more than £19.9m from the Big Lottery Fund’s Well-being programme, which provides funding to support the development of healthier lifestyles and to improve well-being.
Consortium partners are British Cycling, CTC, Campaign for Better Transport, Cycling England, Living Streets, London Cycling Campaign, the National Heart Forum, the National Obesity Forum, the Ramblers, Sustrans and Walk England.
The Big Lottery Fund has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK since its inception in June 2004. It was established by Parliament on 1 December 2006. Full details of the work of the Big Lottery Fund, its programmes and awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk