One of the newest members of the Resilience and Wellbeing Network is housing association Leeds Federated Housing. They created a Summer Challenge on the theme of Be Healthy, Be Active and Be Happy.
Staff feedback prompted the challenge. So the organisation responded by creating a challenge that was fun, that everyone could engage in and that looked at all aspects of health and wellbeing.
Fitness, challenge and fun
A series of activities encouraged staff to increase activity, assess their fitness, challenge themselves and have fun.
It was an eight-week programme with team and individual challenges, health screenings, fitness body challenge, resilience workshops, caffeine and sugar-free weeks. Staff competed in teams to see who could cover the most distance cycling, walking or swimming over the course of the campaign. In total the competing teams covered 18,788 km over the course of the challenge.
People took part in bike rides, with different distances for non-riders and experienced cyclists. They also ran the Leeds 10K and did the Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge, raising over £1,600 for Cancer Research.
A successful campaign
Megan Henderson, HR Manager, said: “The take up was really positive with some people getting involved in everything and some people just attending the health screening. Everything was done through positive choice.”
In addition, informal awards celebrated people’s successes. As a result of everyone joining in, the campaign raised awareness around mental health, encouraged competition, raised engagement and enjoyment levels within the office and reduced sickness.
