Move Mates: Meet the Yorkshire charity volunteers who run walks to get people active

Sarah Sturdy is the project manager for Move Mates in the Selby area and is also responsible for all of its social media presence. It is one of the main projects encompassed by Move the Masses which has been tremendously successful in and around York and has now seen the project spread its wings to Pocklington, Leeds and Durham as well as Sarah’s area.

“Move Mates is essentially a walking buddy active friendship project,” says Sarah. “We pair our beneficiaries, who could come from recommendations by GPs, physiotherapists, families or friends with volunteers.

“It’s really so important for each person’s health and wellbeing that they are able to get out, even just a very short distance, and it’s amazing how many just simply don’t feel able to either through a lack of confidence because of their mental or physical health. Having someone who can come to their front door, meet them and accompany them can be so rewarding for each person, and that goes for both the beneficiary and the volunteer.

Sarah says that, while there are those who may well be fit enough to put on a pair of walking boots that just need the confidence of having a friend alongside them, Move Mates is for all ages and that what Move the Masses is trying to do is create healthier, friendlier communities and community activities.

“Some people might think that getting access to walking is easy, that you just walk out of your front door, but sometimes that one act can be very difficult for some and there are a lot of elements around making that decision to step out of your home which are quite restrictive for a lot of people.

“For older people who perhaps are a little more frail in body or lacking confidence, it might be that they are too scared of falling or simply have anxiety about going out on their own. Some people can feel incredibly isolated because they might not have family either close by or have any living relative at all, and may live on their own, perhaps widowed after many years of being with the same partner. They can often start to feel too lacking in energy or enthusiasm to go to say a café to meet other people.

“That’s where we come in to offer that opportunity, not just to walk with them but to chat, offering that conversation, that communication with somebody that they may really need and can’t necessarily get when they are perhaps stuck within their four walls at home.

Sarah walks with a lady who lives in one of the rural villages a few miles from Selby and explains that the lady now has a goal in mind that they are both working towards.

“We do ask our beneficiaries whether they have something they might like to set as a target for themselves when walking. They don’t have to have a target, but sometimes it can help.

“The lady I am currently walking with has a goal of the pair of us getting to the village café. It’s a target we’ve set for ourselves to achieve in better weather, but even during winter each time we’ve gone out we’ve walked a little bit longer. She’s a lovely lady and we’ve really got to know each other, which is what this is also about, creating friendships. I look forward to meeting her and walking with her every week.

“Before we started, she said that sometimes just going to her front door and opening it and feeling the fresh country air on her face and skin was as far as she could go. What she’s achieved has been so wonderful, you can see on her face and in the way she is reacting just how much she enjoys it.

But Move Mates is for everyone no matter what their age or personal circumstance, as Sarah explains.

“We work with anyone over the age of 18. The only criteria we have is that they can get themselves dressed and get ready for a walk independently. It might be that the person walks with a walking aid like a frame or a stick or need an arm to link, and clearly many like this with mobility issues are a lot older, but there are also a lot of younger people who might suffer from extreme anxiety, unsure about going out on their own and may find life stressful, especially if they are not entirely sure of their surroundings.

“We’ve had people referred in my project area of Selby, such as someone who’s relatively new to the area and anxious about finding her way around. She’s certainly not old but benefits from being paired with a volunteer regularly. She’s now doing really well.

“Another lady needs help getting to the shops. She’s too worried about falling when on her own, so that’s the reason for her referral but there are lots of reasons why people are referred.

Sarah is always on the lookout for volunteer walkers, those who are going to create these friendships and the camaraderie that allows beneficiaries that opportunity to enjoy being outside, get the exercise they need and also achieve their personal goals.

“Volunteers are integral to what we do and this very simple act of being a friend and being alongside someone while they walk is amazingly fulfilling. The first Move Mates project set up in York now has thousands of walks being undertaken every year and a tremendous number of volunteers, but we need more, particularly for York and the two new areas in Selby and Pocklington.

“I feel really proud of the work we do. We are a small team and work well together. The beauty of what we do is that walking is often taken for granted and helping people access something that is so simple yet essential is heartwarming.

“It is lovely reading the walk logs about progress being made and seeing the pictures of happy, fulfilled people and the developing friendships. It may not be about pumping irons in the gym or running marathons, but stretching legs, moving muscles, getting things flowing makes such a difference to so many people and our volunteers.

If you would like to know more about Move Mates contact : https://movemates.org.uk/selby/