We are delighted to be part of a unique approach towards promoting health and wellbeing in our borough via an ambitious strategy to make it a place where more people can be more active by taking advantage of the outdoor spaces and places on their doorstep.
Our mission-and-vision is this: Burnley will be a place where the choice to be active is easy, attractive and enjoyable.
It is exemplified by Beat the Street, which encourages anyone living or working locally to get outdoors, explore the borough and earn points, which are then totted up and exchanged for saplings and wildflower seeds to add greenery to local areas.
The latest game – the third in Burnley – is now underway and follows the launch of the borough’s 10-year #OutdoorTown vision, building on the work already happening to encourage more people of all ages and backgrounds to use what we think are the borough’s greatest assets – its green and blue (water) spaces.
The strategy has been developed by Burnley Leisure and Culture (BLC), the Active Burnley Forum and Together an Active Future (TaAF), one of several local pilot schemes aimed at connecting people with nature to drive equal access to sport and physical activity.
Cheryl Goodman, our Head of Community and Wellbeing, says: “Instead of a more conventional sports and physical activity strategy, we’ve chosen our outdoor town vision, which is actually a step change away from the norm.
“Although Burnley has an industrial heritage, almost two thirds of the borough is rural and we want people to explore it, get to know it and enjoy it for the health and wellbeing benefits it can bring, both physically and mentally.”
The future begins now
Although the strategy has a 10-year timespan, we have set three aims to get it started. Over the next three years our objectives will be:
- Grow and nurture collaboration. Work with, and inspire, place-based partnerships.
- Increase national visibility of Our Outdoor Town movement; seeking to influence integrated place and wellbeing policy at a strategic level.
- Create community led, neighbourhood-based greenspace initiatives which bring inward investment and accessible opportunities to become healthier and happier.
This action plan, and the overall strategy, was launched at Padiham Town Hall and you can read it in full detail here, Our Outdoor Town, or watch the video below.
How will we make this happen?
- Continuing development of the Active Burnley Forum ensuring members feel a connection to the vision and know how their work makes a positive difference to the lives of local people.
- Connect the Outdoor Town vision to Burnley’s Year of Culture in 2027 so that local people, partners and the creative sector see the role of Outdoor Town in the delivery of cultural activities.
- Link physical activity in the outdoors to nature and work which protects and nurtures the environment through our Climate Action Fund partnership.
- Provide opportunities for local people to plant and care for 10,000 trees.
- Host the Naturemind conference at Towneley Hall in June, exploring the latest research and best practice in nature-based social prescribing.
- Deliver a guided walk programme across the borough along with Active Burnley Forum partners.
- Provide inclusive cycling opportunities for people, regardless of age, impairment and ability through British Cycling’s Limitless programme.
- Provide outdoor family learning opportunities through the Outdoor Town Explorers programme using Ernest Cook funding.
- Continue the development of the Outdoor Town website for local people to connect to opportunities to be active, enjoy nature and care for the environment.
- Work together to secure Beat the Street funding for another game in 2027.
How did all this begin?
Our #OutdoorTown vision was born out of Together an Active Future (TaAF) and its partnership with Burnley Active Forum, which has given us the opportunity to host all sorts of activities that support our vision to make more use of the borough’s outdoor spaces for health and wellbeing.
TaAF is part of 12 Sport England pilot schemes across the UK called Local Delivery Pilots (LDPs).
Burnley is in the Pennine Lancashire LDP, along with Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn, Pendle, Ribble Valley and Rossendale – with each borough running its own schemes but with similar themes.
The Pennine Lancashire LDP was one of the first to be established with the support of Sport England in 2017 and has been credited with influencing a £250m investment by Sport England to expand into more areas.
Wherever you live, there’s something close by
Age, impairment and ability are no obstacles to getting involved in our Outdoor Town vision – whoever you are, you can take part in something.
Cheryl Goodman: “Our Outdoor Vision is investing in the strengths we have throughout the borough, creating positive impacts through partnering with great people, who really know their people and communities.
“Wherever you live, there’s something close by in terms of green spaces, canal tow path and countryside, there’s something for everyone to do at your pace, at your level – whatever you’re capable of.”
Activities already well established are Park Yoga every Sunday morning until September, Park Play, two hours of free community play, every Saturday morning in Scott Park – the only event of its kind in East Lancashire.
Other events such as the Big Burnley Walk with its short (3miles), medium (6.8miles) and long (13.4 miles) routes and the nature festival will be returning too.
If you want to find out what’s going on that you can get involved in, or you want to share news of an event you are organising, visit our #OutdoorTown website: outdoortown.uk
