Our Bolton Locality Plan…building a brighter future with you in mind
In Bolton, organisations, like us, that provide health, care and other public services, plus partners from the voluntary, community and social enterprise are all working together to make sure that you and your families can live the best possible lives.
The Bolton Locality Plan is our five-year commitment to you, our Bolton communities, about how we will make this an even better place to be.
The plan has been updated based on the knowledge, experience and ambition we share across our partnership and most importantly, based on what matters most to the people we serve – our communities.
Through this, we have arrived at six core ambitions which we will get us there:
Everything we do across the town should contribute to us achieving one of these priorities.
Tackling Cancer Together
WANDERERS fans will benefit from a host of cancer advice and information at the Bolton Wanderers vs Cambridge United match at the Toughsheet Stadium on Saturday, 2 March, thanks to a Bolton-wide collaboration of organisations who want to ‘tackle cancer together’.
Tackling Cancer Together, an event hosted at the ground before and during the match brings together a range of services and professionals for anyone worried about or wanting to find out more about signs, symptoms and support. The organisations involved include Bolton GP Federation, Bolton Wanderers in the Community, Bolton Macmillan Cancer and Support Services, Bolton Hospice, Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, Healthwatch Bolton, Answer Cancer and Bolton Wanderers Supporters’ Trust.
The event, which runs from 12pm, aims to build awareness of cancer screening programmes, provide opportunities for fans to access information and support, and get a free basic health check. Cambridge United fans and people not attending the match are also welcome to attend.
On entry into the ground, pocket-sized cards will be handed to fans with a QR code that takes them to a webpage full of information and links to support all in one place.
Bolton GP Federation’s Head of People and Quality and cancer survivor, Sue Higson, said: “Statistically, one in two of us will get cancer at some point in our lives, equating to approximately 10,000 people attending the match potentially being affected by cancer in some way.
“We want anyone who has concerns, symptoms, needs support for themselves or others to know that they have somewhere to go, and have confidence in taking that first step. Based on personal experience, it literally can be lifesaving.”
If you would like more information about the event, please email comms@boltongpfed.co.uk.
United We Run – Bolton
WOMEN leaders from across Bolton donned their trainers for a 2.5k walk and a 5k run through the town centre and Queens Park on Saturday, 6 January, aiming to inspire women in communities to embark on a journey towards a happier and healthier life.
United We Run is a groundbreaking national initiative designed to empower women to prioritise their health and wellbeing and has been brought to Bolton thanks to a collaboration between Bolton GP Federation, Bolton Council, Bolton Wanderers in the Community and Her Spirit.
The group of around 25 women, representing all ages, stages of life and fitness levels, also pledged to run or walk 31 miles in 31 days throughout January – with the emphasis not being on speed or distance, but on the collective journey towards becoming fitter, stronger and healthier.
Her Spirit is a mobile fitness app that creates a female only community that motivates, coaches and connects women together, helping them to get started, stay motivated and meet other like-minded women to talk, walk, run, swim and cycle together in real life.
As part of the Bolton movement, women are also being supported with a 10-week run course across the borough and in our communities to ignite and connect women to run together and run safely. And thanks to sponsorship from Bolton GP Federation and the team at Her Spirit, access to the Her Spirit app will become available for free to 12,000 Bolton women who currently struggle to access or afford online support and coaching.
Bolton GP Federation Chief Officer, Michael Smith, said: “Exercise is the one thing that can have the biggest impact on people’s health and happiness – and if we could bottle that and prescribe it in a pill, we would.
“As part of our commitment to tackling health inequalities, we want to do everything we can for Bolton people to get the most out of being more active. This sounds simple, but we hear just how hard this can be when juggling lives, families and other commitments.
“In talking to and listening to our communities, we identified some key things that we could do to help make this a bit easier. Working with partners and our communities, we will soon be handing out free access to the Her Spirit online community, with access to coaches, virtual challenges and live online classes.”
Bolton Council’s Cabinet Member for Health, Adults and Wellbeing, Cllr Linda Thomas, said: “It is extremely important that we work together to increase physical activity amongst women, to help narrow the gap of ill health when compared to men.
“We are committed to working with our partners to create opportunities, including United We Run, to remove barriers so that anybody can get involved no matter what level of ability.
“With a rich heritage in sport and being the host town for IRONMAN UK, the world’s largest IRONKIDS and Night Run, there are lots of events for local people to aim for.”
Bolton Council’s Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, Cllr Rabiya Jiva, said: “I am delighted to be part of the United We Run campaign to inspire women in our communities to start their fitness journey. It was a privilege to take part in the Bolton launch run on Saturday amongst other local partners. With the aim of closing the ethnicity gap and encouraging women from all backgrounds to join in, I am committed to ensuring women feel safe whilst out running.”
Holly Woodford, Co-Founder of Her Spirit, said: “We know that women have multiple barriers to being active and over the last three years 500,000 women have already dropped out of running, yet 6.7 million women want to run1.
“Issues around safety are also a real issue and a global survey by Adidas in 2023 found that 92% of female runners felt unsafe running outside. Working with Bolton is so important to buck these trends and we are excited to be partnering to make a real difference to women in Bolton and around the country.”
Head of Community at Bolton Wanderers in the Community, Richard Slater, said: “The vision of Bolton Wanderers in the Community is to create a connected Bolton without disadvantage, and both the United We Run initiative and Her Spirit fitness app align perfectly with this.
“We are looking forward to working with our partners and communities to deliver access to the Her Spirit online community. The ability the app has to bring people together can have a positive impact on the number of women feeling inspired, connected and safe to exercise.”
More information can be found at www.unitedwerun.co.uk/bolton/
Notes to Editors:
The following organisations were represented at Saturday’s launch walk and run:
- Bolton GP Federation
- Bolton Council
- Bolton Public Health
- Bolton Wanderers in the Community
- Bolton Integrated Care Partnership
- Bolton CVS
- The Bolton Family
- GMP
- Bolton NHS FT
- Bolton FM
For further information contact:
Jack Ayling
Communications Officer
