Move More Month 2021
Since 2015 the month of June in Sheffield has been Move More Month. A month where the city shines a spotlight on Physical Activity.
Over those 5 years we have seen and tried many different ways to get Sheffield moving more. We have worked with schools, developed the Move More app and delivered the workplace challenge. We have even set a Guinness World Record for the most people playing hopscotch simultaneously.
Last year in the middle of the pandemic we reached out to some our most in need communities and delivered 25,000 physical activity calendars as a prompt everyone to take care of their physical and mental health.
As we move out of lockdown (fingers crossed) we want Sheffield to get out and about! To make that happen we are delighted to be bringing Beat The Street to Sheffield!
Alasdair Menmuir who is Beat The Street Sheffield Senior Engagement Coordinator tells us a little more about how to get involved!
Alasdair Menmuir - Senior Engagement Coordinator
You may have seen the news that Beat the Street, a citywide mass participation physical activity game, is coming to Sheffield for 6 weeks from 16 June 2021. We’re very excited about this, as it represents an incredible opportunity for the city and its physical activity, sports and active travel organisations and initiatives. Not only will it bring people together in an inclusive, free, fun event, but it will enhance mutually-sustaining programmes for the health and wellbeing of the whole city as it emerges from the pandemic.
Beat the Street is a major collaborative project for Intelligent Health (founded by Dr William Bird), in Sheffield it is being delivered in partnership with Move More stakeholders including Sheffield City Council.
In the years it has been running, Beat the Street has engaged over a million participants, by encouraging them to walk, run, cycle or roll to mobile ‘beat boxes.’ We’re going to get Sheffielder’s involved in local events during the game, raise money for our nominated charity, the Sheffield Children’s Hospital Charity, and ultimately enable long-term behaviour change and sustainability beyond the lifetime of the game.
My role as Senior Engagement Coordinator involves working with groups, workplaces, organisations and initiatives to enhance the game, establish sustainable relationships, and to help the game run smoothly for all involved! With so many partners, this is going to be a challenging ask, but the pay-off should be a hugely rewarding experience for Sheffield. I want to engage inactive or disengaged communities and individuals and help them see that physical activity can be fun, rewarding, but most of all, accessible.
Overall, we would like to get more than 42,000 people involved in the game across the city – these are huge numbers. But if we can deliver on achieving previous targets from Beat the Street, such as a 30 point increase in mental wellbeing for previously inactive Stranraer residents, and a 10% increase in people meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s physical activity guidelines (30 minutes a day) after the game, as evidenced in previous games (Intelligent Health, 2017), then everyone will benefit.
As a city, we have unrivalled access to green spaces, and a lot to offer for active travellers, but these are not accessed equitably – Beat the Street can activate these locations for our population and increase visibility for the initiatives that work within and around them.
I am just getting started, so if you, your workplace, organisation or group would like to chat, I am here to help. Perhaps we could collaborate? We have so many opportunities to promote you at scale that this works for everyone. It would be great to have you on board! You can email me to discuss how we can work together.
Perhaps you would like to organise an event – we still have some capacity to co-create some relevant events during the 6 themed ‘Go Weeks’ of the game – get a mention in one of our regular newsletters, or can see another way we can work together? If you have a business that would like to improve physical activity levels and active travel in your workplace, if you’d like to explore Sheffield a bit more or organise some fundraising for Sheffield Children’s Hospital Charity…Let’s talk!
Not only do we want to work with you, but we want you to sign up as groups and individuals and play the game! Further details can be found on our website.
We have been making headway in recruiting schools, and have already had expressions of interest from the majority of Sheffield schools, all of whom have been auto-enrolled into the game. If you haven’t heard from our Schools Coordinator Daniel about your school’s involvement, please contact us through the website or any of our social media channels. All school children will receive a fob and a card for their parent, as well as a city map, and we have plans to roll out a virtual assembly and further school-centred activities
Finally, our Community Engagement lead Natalie is working with community groups such as leisure centres, activity groups and community interest groups. Again, if you’ve not heard from her or want to get more involved, send her an email or contact us.
As a team we have only been in post a couple of weeks but with 5 weeks to go until we launch we have plenty to do, but please get in touch.
Twitter: @BTSSheffield
Instagram: @btssheffield
Facebook: @BTSSheffield
I look forward to updating you on our progress on this blog.