Lincolnshire Netball have been awarded a Together Fund Grant of £2,910 to support delivery of Walking Netball sessions in and around Mablethorpe.

The money has been distributed by Active Lincolnshire on behalf of Sport England, and is one of many projects in the county benefitting from the Together Fund. The fund exists to help to reduce the negative impact of coronavirus and support community groups and clubs working with our target audiences - whose activity levels have been most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic - to grow and enable more people to be more active.

Lincolnshire Netball will use the Together Fund grant to deliver walking netball taster sessions at community venues in and around Mablethorpe. They will then run a 10 week programme at a central accessible location. Two participants will be upskilled and trained as a Walking Netball Host to ensure sustainability of the project. The sessions will target over 45s and people with a disability and/or Long Term Health Condition.

Walking Netball is a friendly and inclusive programme. It is a slower version of the game at a walking pace. The game has been designed so that anyone can play it regardless of age ability or fitness level. Benefits of taking part in walking Netball include lower blood pressure, better mobility, reduced weight, better mental health by building confidence and mental and social wellbeing through meeting new people and making new friends.

The Mablethorpe area has been identified from insight as a location whose residents would benefit from the sessions. The East Coast of Lincolnshire is an area of deprivation with Mablethorpe sitting in the top 10% most deprived neighborhoods as well as having an older population with 59% of the population aged 45yrs+ and of those 55% have a limiting long term health problem or disability (ons 21). The nearest walking netball group is currently in Louth and residents can’t afford to travel.

The project follow the success of the Tackling Inequalities funded Walking Back netball project, which helped participants to safely return to walking netball sessions across the county following the Covid pandemic.

Watch the video below to find out more about Walking Back, and the benefits participants enjoy from taking part in Walking Netball.

Find out more about the other programmes that the Together Fund is supporting in Lincolnshire here.

Photo top: walking netball in Boston, photo Chris Vaughan