DESPITE a drop in the number of people participating in sport nationally, LiveWire, Warrington’s biggest provider of sport, fitness, wellbeing services, community events and libraries, has seen an increase in people engaging in activities.
Sports participation across LiveWire’s is up 8% on the same time last year, despite figures released by the Government showing a decline in the number of people participating in sport across the country. Nationally, nearly a quarter of a million less people are taking part in some kind of physical activity each week than this time last year.
The rise in the number of people taking part in LiveWire’s offer is down to their unique approach of providing a whole range of popular activities to improve people’s health and wellbeing in a way that reaches out to every part of the community. The organisation works in a practical way of combining delivery across the whole town and does this by providing outreach activities in different neighbourhoods and also having an extensive offer across their two neighbourhood hubs and four leisure centres.
Since the inception of the Active Warrington team into LiveWire in 2014, they’ve delivered more than 700 hours of sport in the community across 451 sessions with 10,327 people participating.
Funding from the National Lottery through Sport England, to the sum of almost £230,000, has also allowed LiveWire to set up the Bewsey and Dallam Active Zone which provides multi-sport activities for parents and children in two of Warrington’s most deprived wards.
The project has helped 40 women from the area achieve their weight loss goals through weekly combat sessions with some shedding more than three stone since starting the sessions. The project also keeps young people active providing sport activities for children while their parents exercise.
Tennis is also proving to be popular with outdoor court usage at Birchwood Leisure and Tennis Complex up 45 per cent taking the number of players at the club up to 6000, double that of a year ago.
Summer camps and tennis outreach events across the town have allowed LiveWire’s tennis coaches to interact with people who might not already have been involved with the sport. The team even took a group to play at Roehampton and Wimbledon this summer.
Jan Souness
Jan Souness, Managing Director of LiveWire, said:“It’s fantastic to see such a big uptake in our activities across Warrington. LiveWire is committed to ensuring there are opportunities in every part of the town to support residents to become the healthiest, most active and happiest in the North West.
“We also have a responsibility to help Warrington residents have an enjoyable time. This is achieved through our partnership with Culture Warrington, which allows people to access not just sports but also Culture to improve their wellbeing. A prime example of how we work well together is the upcoming Warrington Festival of sport, culture and entertainment.”
