Wellness is the word at Belong care village in Atherton, as care workers take part in a wellbeing initiative designed to boost their health and fitness during the coronavirus pandemic.
Rolled out at the beginning of lockdown, the scheme has proven a great success so far, with participants reporting a number of positive outcomes, including improvements to energy levels, sleep and team morale. As well as benefitting from personalised fitness and nutrition plans, the group has been able to track their goals with weekly progress monitoring, assisted by Belong’s dedicated exercise instructor, Chantelle Crawley.
Speaking of this, Chantelle said: “Working in the care sector during coronavirus brings its own set of challenges and the village team has been really committed to taking ownership of their mental and physical health at this time. We’ve been delighted to see some incredible results over the last couple of months, ranging from weight loss to reports of enhanced mood.
“It’s safe to say that the initiative has definitely achieved its aim of helping people make healthier lifestyle choices, even if it’s the simple things usually taken for granted, such as drinking more water or taking a break.”
A key part of the scheme is the village’s step challenge, which has seen staff clock up the miles in a bid to become more active in their everyday lives. Team members document their individual achievements through a shared online platform, with those making the biggest improvements awarded with a certificate and trophy each week. The group plan on taking this one step further in October by hiking up Loughrigg Fell in the Lake District.
Belong Atherton’s general manager, Rebecca Woodcock, said: “Lockdown has affected everyone in different ways and the wellbeing initiative has played a vital role in keeping us feeling positive and motivated during this challenging time. Not only is it helping us live healthier lifestyles, but it’s created a lot of laughter and brought us even closer together as a team. It’s definitely something we plan to keep up beyond coronavirus.”
Following the success of the initiative at Belong Atherton, the scheme has now been rolled out across the care operator’s six other villages in the North West.
