A walk in the park

The Ramblers will this weekend launch a progamme of short health walks in London’s Royal Parks, funded by the Royal Parks and Natural England. Working in partnership with the Rain Trust and using Walking for Health’s tools and processes, the Ramblers’s A Walk in the Park project will recruit, train and support 28 volunteers to establish and deliver a programme of 10 walks each week in some of London’s most iconic green spaces.

“For decades the Ramblers has been helping people to help themselves,” says Tom Franklin, Chief Executive of the Ramblers. “Over the last four years the Ramblers has complemented this ‘nudging’ with dedicated outreach programmes involving 12,000 people in Birmingham, London, Sheffield and Manchester. The innovative model, developed by the Ramblers, called Get Walking Keep Walking, has recently been recognised by the World Health Organisation as a leading example of physical activity promotion to socially disadvantaged groups.”

There is a growing body of evidence – including findings from the Ramblers own Get Walking Keep Walking projects – which demonstrates the value of taking part in walking every day, both for physical and mental wellbeing. Walking can help to reduce the risk of heart disease, lower blood pressure, help to control weight and even elevate your mood – as any Rambler will know well!

A recent Natural England report revealed that visits to the natural environment, including urban parks and green spaces, are significantly lower within the black and minority ethnic (BME) population and members of the DE socio-economic groups. This project will merge the Ramblers experience of delivering targeted outreach programmes with the principles of Walking for Health to encourage various communities living near the Royal Parks to make the most of the fantastic opportunities that are on their doorsteps.

“Many Ramblers Groups already work closely with their local Walking for Health schemes,” add Tom. “With the launch of A Walk in the Park we are delighted to further strengthen that relationship and add Walking for Health to the Ramblers portfolio of delivery. We would like to thank Natural England and the Royal Parks for having the vision to involve the Ramblers more closely with Walking for Health.”

The launch takes place at Speaker’s Corner, Hyde Park on Sunday 23rd January at 12pm and will be attended by Ramblers Chief Executive, Tom Franklin.

Image: Panos Asproulis