Salford Beat the Street launches with 11,000 sign ups in first 6 days

Residents may have seen beeping and flashing sensors called ‘Beat Boxes’ which have been placed on lampposts around the area to help participants explore the local area and all it has to offer and to develop the habit of regular exercise. To play, players need a card which can be collected from one of the distribution centres listed at www.beatthestreet.me/salford  or alternatively, players over the age of 13 can download the free Beat the Street app to play the game on their phone.

The first week of the game is themed ‘Go Play’ for players to get to grips with the rules and subsequent weeks have a different focus, from Go Explore to Go Wild and Go Travel.

Players can join a school, community or workplace team, or you can help one of the chosen charities: Age UK (Salford & Trafford); Salford Loaves & Fishes, Lowry Centre Trust and Salford Foundation Trust.

There are prizes for the teams that clock up the highest number of active travel miles, plus an average points leaderboard so that teams of all sizes can win. Currently, Lewis Street Primary School tops the total points leaderboard, with St Peter’s Primary School in second place and Willow Tree Primary School in third place. On the average points leaderboard, St Philips CE is currently top, with The Winton Wanderers in second place and MileShyClub Salford in third. With six more weeks of the game, there is plenty of time for everything to change!

As part of the initiative, Salford residents’ steps will contribute to greening their local area, with hundreds of trees set to be planted with Greater Manchester charity City of Trees. Residents will also have the opportunity to become ‘Citizen Foresters’, volunteering to support tree planting and maintenance efforts across Salford.

Beat the Street Salford is a community initiative commissioned by the Bupa Foundation, with co-funding from Salford City Council, Canal & River Trust, and Sport England through National Lottery funding. The programme is delivered by Intelligent Health.

Anna Russell, Director of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability and Bupa Foundation, said: “Salford is home to one of Bupa’s largest employee communities, so we’re especially proud to support ‘Beat the Street’ here. It’s a brilliant way to help people get active, connect with each other, and green their local area through our partnership with City of Trees. Practical, local action like this is key to building healthier communities and a healthier planet.”

Councillor Mishal Saeed, Executive Support Member for Social Care and Mental Health, said: “We want everyone in Salford to live longer, healthier and happier lives, so the Beat the Street campaign aligns perfectly with the Council's Public Health objectives to increase levels of physical activity and movement in adults, children, and young people.

In addition, increasing movement and physical activity are essential for our physical and mental well-being. As the Chair of the All Age Mental Health, I fully support any campaign that positively influences our social, community, economic, and personal development because promoting good health is a collective responsibility.”

Councillor Hannah Robinson-Smith, Lead Member for Culture, Heritage, Equalities, Sports and Leisure, added: “Salford is a city that prides itself on its rich cultural heritage and vibrant towns and neighbourhoods, each with their own unique identity. It is home to beautiful, award-winning green spaces, diverse communities, excellent transport connections, and world-class cultural, creative and sporting facilities.

What I love about the Beat the Street campaign is that it presents a great opportunity for people to come together and explore everything Salford has to offer in a fun and interactive way. As a result, we get to enhance the lives and health of our communities and increase opportunities for residents to play a more active role in their local area, which gets my support.”

To find out more and get involved visit, www.beatthestreet.me/Salford and on social media at @BTSSalford