Queens Park Community Orchard: Getting active after isolation

Queen’s Park Community Orchard - Helping to get people active after long periods of isolation.

Queen's Park Community Orchard is based in one of Bedford's poorest areas, Queens Park and addresses many of the challenges found within the community including poverty, isolation, racism and prejudice. During the Covid-19 crisis they delivered food parcels to the most in need and that has enabled them to maintain close links to those communities that have been targeting specifically with this activity based project.

  • They will run one hour fitness classes a week for a number of the most in need communities that they work with.
  • They will aim to provide moderate intensity physical activity sessions that can comfortably accommodate 10 participants per session (reaching 70 adults regularly each week). Whilst this can be comfortably achieved outside they acknowledge that they may need to reduce these numbers to comply with COVID-19 regulations as and when they move the sessions indoors during the poorer winter months. Every effort is being made to secure venues that will still facilitate these numbers and a number have been identified.
  • They have identified the following target audiences and locations: Kingsbrook ward - Target communities - Cape Verde/Rwanda/Italian/Madagascar; Queens Park ward - Target communities - Kenyan; Brickhill Ward - Target communities - Zimbabwe; South Asian; Nigerian; Kempston - target communities - Mainly Asian males; Kingsbrook Ward - Target communities - Bangladeshi muslim women; Queens Park Ward - target communities - South Asian muslim men aged 40 years and older.
  • They will commission a qualified fitness coach for each session; provide the groups with equipment and resources and instruction around how to use this safely. It will be a safe space for people to come and exercise especially for those who are trying physical activity for the first time.
  • They will also keep in touch with people to make sure that they are attending regularly and they are happy with the classes.
  • Activity will take place outdoors throughout the rest of September, October and March and be placed in doors, if at all possible, during November, December, January and February.

AREAS INVOLVED

  • BEDFORD

PRIORITY GROUPS:

  • Diverse Ethnic Communities
  • Low Socio Economic Groups

FUNDING AWARDED:

£9095

The results so far