Emergency support for satellite clubs during pandemic

Rise has supported clubs and projects throughout the Tyne and Wear and Northumberland areas with over £20,000 in emergency satellite club funding, in order to keep people active during the coronavirus pandemic.

The charity, which is funded by Sport England, has aided several local projects in order to provide more opportunities for residents to remain active during the coronavirus pandemic.

Jade Scott, Club Development Manager for Rise said: “We’re extremely pleased with the response we received to the Emergency Satellite Club funding. The organisations were so positive and came up with brilliant ideas to keep young people active.

“By working closely already to deliver the traditional satellite clubs, we know they have great relationships with the young people in their area so we’re confident they are going to deliver some excellent projects and can’t wait to see the outcomes of them all.”

South Tyneside based project, Bright Futures, which works with females aged 11 to 25, is one of the projects benefiting from the emergency funding, which is being used to develop and deliver a programme for young women and their families, encouraging them to maintain good health and wellbeing during lockdown. The programme includes at-home guidance on healthy eating, mindfulness, sport and fitness, as well as weekly workouts recorded by qualified fitness instructors.

Helen Bowman, Managing Director at Bright Futures said: "Thanks to the Emergency Satellite Club Funding, Bright Futures are able to provide young women and their families with a range of virtual, live and interactive sporting, fitness and workout sessions during the Coronavirus pandemic.

“These sessions will encourage families to stay fit and healthy as well as providing an opportunity to have fun and learn new knowledge and skills."

Leading Link, a youth charity in Northumberland, has arranged an ongoing hula hoop challenge for a group of 20 young people in a bid to make working out at home more fun during the coronavirus pandemic. Young people at the project said they wanted to have a quirky way of exercising rather than the usual workouts that are currently being streamed online.

Each week they are given a different hula hoop challenge, which they video themselves doing and send in. The winner of each weekly challenge wins a small prize. There will also be prizes at the end of the period including funniest challenge and most improved hula hooper.

Lyn Horton, CEO at Leading Link, said:

“It's been absolutely fantastic for engaging young people and their parents, helping with emotional well-being whilst having fun too. Many have never used a hula hoop before, especially a weighted one and we hope to have a big grand hula hoop competition and celebration when things begin to return to normal! We really appreciate the emergency funding support – it has brought a smile to so many families in lockdown and give us some great positive memories in all of this.”

Amongst many other projects benefitting from the emergency satellite club funding, is Sunderland Community Action Group, which has used the funds to provide a cycle loan scheme. Residents of Hendon and Roker can loan a ready to use bike and PPE equipment on a weekly or daily basis. Once a member signs up to the scheme, a bicycle will be delivered to their door by staff in a safe way and whilst still observing social distancing. Staff will then collect the bike once the loan period is up. Upon return, the bikes are cleaned and checked before being made available for use again.

Richy Duggan, Project Manager at Sunderland Community Action Group, said: “We are so pleased to have received the emergency satellite club funding. This will enable us to continue to work closely with members of our community, targeting those most in need of our support.”

Finally, the emergency funding is also helping families at Edburt’s House in Gateshead. Its team of people from the local community has specifically designed a project for the lockdown period during the Covid-19 pandemic. Encouraging children and young people within their communities to be active and socialise with one another, funds have been used to source smart fitness trackers and skipping ropes, with which the children and young people are being set challenges and activities via social media platforms, to complete within their own homes and gardens.

To find out more about emergency satellite club funding, please click here.