New fitness programme for East Durham women funded by National Grid
A year-long fitness and well-being programme for women aged 40-60 has launched in East Durham, thanks to £10,000 in funding from National Grid.
The specialist sessions will be delivered by East Durham Health and Fitness, based in Cold Hesledon, with co-owner Lauren Conway saying the money has made possible a class she has wanted to run for a long time.
“I just think that this section of society is really under-catered for,” she said.
EGL1 project and wind farms benefits
National Grid is investing in the region through its EGL1 project. It will deliver clean energy from Scottish wind farms to the North East and additionally fund a string of community benefits throughout the region.
Project overview
The £1.8bn project will deliver electricity.
The electricity will reach a substation built on the site of the former Hawthorn Pit in County Durham.
Community benefits
“Getting the funding was amazing and has transformed what we’re able to do,” said Lauren.
“It has made a huge difference, allowing us to provide more support to the local community and improve both physical and mental health.
”It has enabled us to invest in equipment to run the project and reduce the cost of sessions, making them more accessible to harder‑to‑reach families.”
The classes are dedicated to helping improve physical health, confidence, and social connection delivering tailor-made health and fitness sessions for women aged between 40-60.
Lauren said: “I think there’s a need for this in the community, a group that tends to be overlooked, because it’s a challenging time of life and as well as the exercise sessions and the strengthening sessions, there’s also a social element to it.”
We started the pilot session with eight, but we have rapidly risen to 12. We are looking to invite more.
We run eight‑week courses. Then people can decide if they want to stay on, which, so far, they have.
“People take the sessions and then stay for coffee.”
East Durham Fitness is a community interest company that already runs classes for pregnancy, children and gentle exercise, and can now add the 40-60 women’s group to its list of specialist sessions.
Murton-born Lauren and co-owner Steven Hart are drawing on a decade of experience working in health improvement within the NHS, in Lauren’s case specialising in stroke rehabilitation, prevention and occupational health.
Their specialist sessions aim to provide a community service that would otherwise not be available.
“All these sessions are specifically aimed at sections of the community that tend to go under‑catered for, and the 40–60 women’s group has been a long-term goal from my own point of view,” she said.
“I’m really pleased that we are now able to get it off the ground.
“We take a health‑based exercise approach that includes strengthening work. We wanted to make it as welcoming as possible.”
Broader wind farm support
Nik Davies, project director for Eastern Green Link 1, said supporting local initiatives was a key part of the development.
“Electricity supports every part of our day-to-day lives and with demand set to double we now need the grid to match,” he said.
“Eastern Green Link 1 will play a transformative role in delivering the modern electricity network needed for the future.
“At the same time, it will deliver economic growth, jobs and a supply chain boost in County Durham and beyond.
“Importantly, for the communities hosting this vital infrastructure, we are delighted to support projects that matter locally and deliver long-term social value.”
Since construction began, National Grid has awarded just over £250,000 to support community projects near the EGL1 route.
For more information on the new exercise classes, visit eastdurhamfitness.co.uk or email info@eastdurhamfitness.com.
East Durham Fitness is located at Site 3, Unit 4, Cold Hesledon Industrial Estate, SR7 8ST.
