Walking enthusiasts are being called upon to inspire others to take up the activity this New Year.

In a bid to get more people walking in areas local to them, the council will be offering a free training session for anyone interested in becoming a “Worcestershire Health Walks” Walk Leader.

Walk Leaders run safe and enjoyable walking sessions and routes for other local people of varying abilities. It is a voluntary role and walk leaders usually set up walks in their local area at a time to suit them.

The training to become a walk leader will take place on Wednesday 2nd February 2022 and will take approximately two hours from 2pm to 4pm. A local venue, likely Parkside, will be confirmed when it is known how many people are interested in attending. It is open to anyone from Bromsgrove District or Redditch Borough.

The training will help participants to:
•    understand the role of a walk leader
•    be clear about some practicalities of running a safe and enjoyable walk
•    know that walking is good for us all, and how to help others overcome barriers to joining a walk
•    gain the confidence needed to lead a health walk
•    meet each other, share ideas and trouble-shoot any concerns about walks

Whilst Walk Leaders will be responsible for many aspects of the walks they set up, the council will provide support with promoting the walk to the public as well as admin and cover when needed.

Walks come in all shapes and sizes, with current sessions covering everything from gentle walks for the more unsteady to buggy walks for new parents.

Cllr Shirley Webb, whose portfolio covers health and wellbeing, said: “Without our dedicated volunteer walk leaders, we would not be able to run our health walks across the district and we’d love to get more people on board. Walking is a fantastic form of exercise, and more walk leaders means more people getting fit with a walking group near them.”

For more information or to sign up for the training, please contact us here.