Funding boost for Active Travel Social Prescribing for Barrow and Carlisle

August 30, 2022

Cumbria County Council welcomes £1.5 million in funding to carry out pilot projects for Active Travel schemes in Barrow and Carlisle.

The government has awarded £12.7 million in multi-year funding to 11 local authority areas in England, with Cumbria County Council being one of the recipients. The £1.5m of funding is being made available over a three-year period until March 2025.

Cumbria County Council will collaborate with Barrow Borough Council and Carlisle City Council to provide support for older people, individuals with long-term health conditions, those in lower social economic groups, culturally diverse communities, and younger people.

The funding will be used to:

• Establish a series of Active Travel Events - educating a wider audience on ways to get more active
• Create opportunities for engaging with e-bikes and adaptable bikes
• Recruit Lead and Support Officers to manage the programme
• Implement hire and loan cycle schemes in Carlisle and Barrow
• Raise awareness with existing providers of their ongoing operations, and repurposing of unwanted/abandoned cycles 
• Enhance cycle parking in places like leisure centres, retail outlets, central hubs, health settings, and schools
• Establish a central digital information platform, signposting referrals and visitors to existing partners' wide range of services.

This programme complements the Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs) that have been prepared for Barrow and Carlisle. The LCWIPs identify and prioritise cycling and walking improvements at a local level, focusing on routes used for everyday shorter journeys. The council is now working with partners to secure funding to deliver active travel improvements identified in the LCWIPs.

Cllr Keith Little, Cumbria County Council Cabinet member for Highways and Transport, said:

"This is excellent news for Cumbria County Council, as the Department for Transport only selected 11 local authority areas in England to benefit from £12.7 million in multi-year funding.

“The funding success means that we can engage with health providers to tackle inactivity and help improve health and well-being in communities across central Barrow-¬in¬-Furness and Carlisle. 

“Getting active is hugely beneficial for both our mental and physical health - helping reduce stress and ward off other illnesses, walking and cycling also improves air quality in our communities and will help to reduce congestion within our towns.

“I would like to encourage everyone to get involved with the programme and make it possible for this funding award to be really beneficial for our communities.”

For all the 'Your Cumbria' latest council news