The Fit 4 Life Centre on the Donegall Road, Belfast, was officially launched today (Friday 6th June 2014) by Nelson McCausland MLA, Minister for Social Development.
John Robinson, President of Ulster Rugby, and Cynthia Smith, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure also spoke at the launch.
The Fit 4 Life Centre is a community-based fitness studio, run by Greater Village Regeneration Trust as a social enterprise, for the people of the South-West Belfast Neighbourhood Renewal Area (namely, Village, Mid-Donegall Road and Sandy Row). The motivation for the Centre was to encourage local people to engage in physical activity in a relaxed atmosphere, with a view to tackling health inequalities and to support those living with health problems and conditions.
The launch coincided with the completion of the transformation of the Fit 4 Life Centre. This work was funded by the Department for Social Development (DSD) under its Neighbourhood Renewal Programme, and the Department for Culture, Arts & Leisure (DCAL) and Ulster Rugby through the 'Promoting Equality, Tackling Poverty and Social Exclusion through Sport' programme.
DSD funded a new gym-flooring, air-conditioning, music and television system, new shower room, security system, treadmill, lockers and the introduction of water dispenser.
DCAL and Ulster Rugby, financed the introduction of a Strength and Conditioning Room, complete with Power Cage with a Chin Up Bar and Olympic Insert Lifting platform, Rubber Dumbbells and racks, Cable Crossover Machine, concept 2 rowing machine, six spin bikes, weight-lifting benches and associated equipment.
Ulster Rugby President, John Robinson, commented: "We're delighted to be able to contribute to this fantastic project. One of our key organisational goals is to improve health and wellbeing among all age groups and I believe the installation of gym equipment at sites such as the Fit4Life Centre is a great way to achieve that. Our community gym initiative will see the refurbishment of 15 gyms in total across the Province and is a key aspect of our plans to increase opportunities for people to engage with fitness and rugby sessions. Jonathan Quigley, Belfast City Council's Active Communities Coach, has been doing some brilliant work in exposing more and more people in this area to the game of rugby and hopefully we will see even more progress in the future. I'd like to thank the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure for their continued support in helping us expand rugby in both traditional and non-traditional areas."
Glen McCrum, Fit 4 Life Centre Manager, said: "The development of a community-based fitness centre has been a long term aim of GVRT. We recognise that there are many people living in the local area who are living with disabilities, maybe a bit over weight and have lost their confidence, have recently been made unemployed, for example, and we wanted to create a space that removed all barriers to participation in physical activity. We’ve invested in inclusive fitness standard machines, we’ve kept mirrors to a minimum and brought in equipment and machines suitable for all age groups and abilities."
Paula Bradshaw, Director of Greater Village Regeneration Trust, added: "The Fit 4 Life Centre has so far been a great success. People from all sections of the local community are now coming to the gym, many of whom haven’t taken part in physical activity for many years. We want to create a relaxed atmosphere where everyone feels welcome and supported on their journey to a healthier lifestyle. An important aspect of the gym is that all its staff and on-call coaches are local people who have been trained up through the Centre."