Do you know any football mad youngsters? Have you heard about the truly inspirational Charlie Fry books by Martin Smith? If you’ve been searching for the best children’s football books around, look no further!

Charlie Fry is the Football Boy Wonder. The 11-year-old has cystic fibrosis, meaning he can’t run far.

Then one day, something magical happens and Charlie gains a power that means he becomes the world’s best football player.

The Football Boy Wonder has been followed by 3 more, The Demon Football Manager, The Magic Football Book and The Football Spy.

Author Martin said: “The series is aimed at children aged between seven and 13 focusing on friendship, loyalty, bullying and, of course, football.

“It follows the story of Charlie Fry, a lad who dreams of being a professional footballer but can’t run due to cystic fibrosis. Belief is a key theme throughout the series.

“CF is a condition I’ve had since birth and something I’m eager to raise awareness about among younger generations.

“I hope you enjoy reading the Charlie Fry series.”

You can learn more from Charlie Fry here on Facebook and Amazon. Get them reading this half term! Capture their imagination and if you need any help finding a football team or coaching session for your children feel free to ask the team at your nearest Active Nation venue!

The post Inspire All Football Mad Youngsters With These Best Selling Books! appeared first on Active Nation.

Sportivate is a £56 million Lottery funded London 2012 legacy project that gives more young people the chance to discover a sport that they love.

11-25 year olds will be able to sign up for the Street Basketball by paying £4.50 for the 9 week course launching on January 28th from 11.30am-12.30pm.

ClubFit is a simple, fun dance fitness routine using glow sticks to club anthems from 90′s classics to the latest chart hits taught in a darkened room with disco lights. Sessions for 13-25 year olds launch on February 3rd and will run every Friday from 5pm. All activities at the Riseholme Road venue will be run by fully qualified instructors.

Active Nation’s Louise Vacca said: “We’re really looking forward to running these courses alongside our usual Studio3 and group exercise timetables. They are a great way for young people to get active and try something new.”

None of the sessions require any previous experience and promise to be great fun.

Spaces are limited so please book online or by calling 01522 304400 to avoid disappointment!

Get inspired and check out our online timetables for Yarborough Leisure Centre here: http://activenation.org.uk/venues/yarborough-leisure-centre/#timetables

The post 9 Weeks Of Sportivate Basketballl Or ClubFit For Just £4.50 In Lincoln! appeared first on Active Nation.

Olympic silver medallist, Peter Waterfield, is returning to Active Nation’s Quays Swimming And Diving Complex for a second time this month to share his knowledge and experience with anyone wanting to learn more about the sport of springboard/highboard diving.

Peter was at the Southampton venue all day on Monday 8^th August and was truly inspirational. One parent said: “Thank you for this, my son thought it was great and loved hearing about Pete’s diving life and seeing his medals.”

Peter is coming back to the venue on Friday 19^th August – offering another opportunity to hear about his career or to have a go at diving under his tuition.

Sessions include “An Audience with Pete”, giving a chance to meet the star and ask all those questions about what goes on behind the scenes.

For the more active there will be adult or family sessions in the pool with hints and tips about developing your diving skills.

Peter is looking forward to coming back and being able to pass his expertise on to the residents of Southampton.  “Diving has been the centre of my life for almost as long as I can remember,” he explained, “and continues to be my passion although I have now finished competing.  It is great to have the opportunity to develop that love of the sport with other people now by giving them a chance to hear about my experiences and get some advice on improving their technique.”

Anyone wanting to take part needs to ensure that they have booked into a slot at least 48 hours ahead.  Full details available by ringing the Dive Office on 023 8072 0922 or email Divingatthequays@activenation.org.uk

The post Diving Masterclasses With Peter Waterfield At Active Nation appeared first on Active Nation.

A brilliant new soft play area and the ultimate party venue for under 5s has launched at Active Nation’s Yarborough Leisure Centre in Lincoln!

The new Studio 3 soft play inflatable is proving to be a huge hit with youngsters – and their parents too! Come down and see for yourself and make the most of our introductory offers!

Sessions run every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10am-11am, 11am-midday and cost £2 for an hour.

Avoid disappointment by booking your sessions in advance by calling 01522 304400 or by popping into reception.

The soft play area is also available to hire for birthday parties! All you need to do is to bring the kids and let them bounce, run and laugh themselves silly. For more information please email: Harriet.Barker@activenation.org.uk

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Families will have a whale of a time as they dive like Dory, splash like sea lions and hide like Hank in a brilliant series of Finding Dory inspired fun swim sessions running at many Active Nation pools this summer!

These new family pool activities have been inspired by the Disney Pixar summer blockbuster and are based on the ASA’s core aquatic skills and will be led by one of our trained swim instructors.

Dive into a summer of activity with these one hour sessions – where each week will tell another part of Dory’s story.

The bookable sessions are open to families with children of all abilities aged 3-9 years – all children must be accompanied by an adult.

The first 50,000 children across the UK that attend three sessions will receive a Finding Dory branded swimming bag from reception. All you need to do is collect a loyalty card from reception at your first session which must then be stamped on three separate occasions to qualify for the bag. One card per person only. Full terms and conditions are available on the ASA website here.

You could also win a Finding Dory prize bundle worth £250 when you upload a photo from our Photo Standee in the café area, via your Instagram account using #JustKeepMoving.

The competition will run for 6 weeks, from 22 July – 4 September. 10 winners will be selected every week. Full terms and conditions are available on the Disney website www.disney.co.uk/justkeepmoving

Give your nearest Active Nation pool a call to see if they are running these brilliant sessions!

The post This Summer Prepare For An Ocean Of Fun With New Finding Dory Sessions At Active Nation Pools! appeared first on Active Nation.

Our brand new Apex indoor climbing centre is now open! It’s ideal for children’s parties, family fun, corporate team building or just as a workout! So please come down, have fun and see how far you, your friends and family can go!

Apex, based at Green Bank Leisure Centre, is the newest addition to Active Nation’s range of activities, where regardless of age or experience anyone can become a climbing hero. The Sport England project provides a 16 station indoor clip and climb centre with a variety of different designs and difficulties for the ultimate challenge.

Active Nation’s Shaun Tasker said: “We are all really excited to welcome everyone to Apex. The brilliant thing is that no experience is needed at all, we’ll get you strapped into the harness and it’s go go go for 60 minutes of fun as you race to the top and complete the challenges.”

Peak Sessions (£8 per person):

Fridays: 3.30pm – 9.00pm

Weekends: 9.30am – 6.00pm

School Holidays: 9.30am – 6.00pm

Bank Holidays: 9.30am – 6.00pm

Off Peak Sessions (£6 per person):
Monday to Thursday: 3.30pm – 8.00pm

Apex also offers a range of different climbing packages to suit every occasion including: individual or group coached sessions, exclusive sessions and parties. Please ask a member of the team for more information or visit: http://activenation.org.uk/venues/green-bank-leisure-centre/apex-climbing-centre/

All attendees aged between 5 years and 17 years must hand a completed parental consent form to the Apex climbing instructor prior to their session.

Fancy giving it a go? Come and join the fun, give us a call on 01283 216269 for more information or book your session online by clicking HERE!

Apex is the final phase of a £1million redevelopment of Active Nation’s Green Bank Leisure Centre. Party rooms, a studio and community areas have also been created within Grove Hall. It has seen the installation of a brilliant new Wattbike indoor cycling studio, the replacement of the sports hall floor and the poolside and spectator areas revamped.

The post Face The Ultimate Challenge At Our Brand New Apex Climbing Centre! appeared first on Active Nation.

Southampton residents can now take advantage of hundreds of free and fun activity sessions as ParkLives launches in the city for the first time. ParkLives, a national programme from Coca-Cola Great Britain delivered in partnership with Active Nation, will offer free and fun activity sessions in parks and green spaces across the region.

From jogging and cricket, to Family Fun sessions and paddle board yoga, ParkLives is designed to appeal to all ages and abilities, giving people the opportunity to get out and enjoy their parks and green spaces with a range of sports, games and activities on offer.

The programme will offer 20 different activities, all completely free, and led by a trained activity leader from the local area.  Residents can view a full timetable and reserve a space online at www.parklives.com

The action will run through to September, with an extended programme running throughout the summer holidays. Sessions will run in 11 parks and green spaces across the city including: Mansel Park, Riverside Park, Hoglands Park, Weston Shore, Southampton Common and Active Nation’s  Southampton Outdoor Sports Centre and Woodmill Outdoor Activities Centre.

Active Nation’s David Drew said: “We often talk to people who want to engage in some form of activity but either cannot afford it, cannot get to it or they have challenges like child care issues.  The ParkLives programme offers a fantastic opportunity to work with communities across the city to build a programme of fun, easily accessible activities right on their doorstep and at no cost eliminating the barriers people often face when trying to be active.  We also hope by providing some structured activity within local parks we can show people how easy and accessible these spaces are.

“As a charity on a mission to persuade the Nation to be Active, we are incredibly excited to be leading on the delivery of the ParkLives programme which we know will make a big difference to people across the city and in turn we hope to see more people make a commitment to leading a more active lifestyle.”

Liz Lowe, ParkLives lead at Coca-Cola Great Britain, said: “ParkLives is all about bringing communities together to enjoy fun, free activities in their local green spaces and we’re delighted to be launching in Southampton this year.  It’s an opportunity to get out there and try something new with your friends and family, have fun and be active in the great outdoors.  For many years we have supported programmes that invest in the wellbeing of local communities – and ParkLives is a long-term partnership programme which does just that. Now in its third year, it’s fantastic to see the programme go from strength to strength and expand nationwide to ten cities across the UK.”

ParkLives launched in 2014 and is part of a £20 million commitment by Coca-Cola Great Britain to invest in community-based projects that help people be active. The programme now runs in 10 cities across the UK including Birmingham, Dundee, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Newham (London), Swansea, Southampton and Stoke-On-Trent.

A full timetable – including a postcode-led local park finder – can be found at www.parklives.com where people can register to book a free activity session for themselves, as well as friends and family.

The post Enjoy Free And Fun Activities As Parklives Launches In Southampton! appeared first on Active Nation.

Active Nation are excited to announce that we have been shortlisted for a prestigious national leisure industry award thanks to our brilliant new Active Nutrition programme.

The ukactive Flame Awards are the largest celebration of innovation and excellence from across the sector, with hundreds of organisations vying for these highly coveted awards.

Judges shortlisted Active Nation for a Spark Of Innovation Award after hearing how Active Nutrition helps you to eat right and get the very best out of your exercise routine through a balanced nutrition programme.

Active Nutrition provides a customised plan for each person, with tasty recipes and meal ideas, a traffic light guide to show you what’s healthy and what’s not, a structured weight change plan, and even the option to order your shopping list from a local supermarket direct to your door.

Active Nation’s managing director Stuart Martin said: “We all know how brilliant Active Nutrition is and how in the first few months it has helped hundreds of people to reach their health and exercise goals.

“To be shortlisted and recognised so quickly is a huge boost and we cannot wait for the awards night on June 29^th. Making it through to the final is a great start and I believe Active Nutrition deserves to go all the way. It truly is an innovative way to help people support their exercise routine with a balanced and healthy eating programme.”

For more information about Active Nutrition please visit: http://activenation.org.uk/active-nutrition/

The awards – which are sponsored by Matrix Fitness – will be announced at a glitzy show taking place on 29 June at Telford International Centre.

The post Active Nation Celebrates As Active Nutrition Is Shortlisted For A Leading Industry Award appeared first on Active Nation.

We are about to launch a new class timetable designed specifically for young people in and around Lincoln. Every week we run more than 90 classes for our adult supporters at Yarborough Leisure Centre and we are really excited to dedicate our expertise and time to help 7-15 year olds to get active. The brilliant news is that until April 10th all classes will be FREE for everyone to come and have a go!

Following on from the brilliant success and popularity of our Swim School and junior activities such as trampolining, badminton, basketball and junior gym sessions we are now looking forward to expanding this to dedicated fitness classes. From Monday March 21st – we will be running the following from the building in our car park that is strictly out of bounds for all adults (with the exception of our class instructors):

Mondays: 1715-1745 – Spin (11-15yrs)

Tuesdays: 1615-1700 – Yoga (7-11yrs) 1700-1745 – Yoga (11-15yrs) 1910-1950 – Fighting Fit (11-15yrs)

Wednesdays: 1715-1745 – Spin (11-15yrs)

Thursdays: 1715-1800 – Circuits (11-15yrs)

Fridays: 1715-1745 – Spin (11-15yrs)

From April 11th the classes will be £1 for a 30 minute class and £2 for a 45 minute class. There will also be the opportunity to add junior members to existing adult subscriptions and to set up a Junior Class Only membership. For more information about these memberships please call the campaign team on 01522 304404 for prices and more information.

All classes will be FREE until April 10th and we are hoping to announce some brilliant additions to the timetable soon! So please watch this space!

Active Nation’s Stuart Blackbourn said: “We are really excited about this launch and the addition of specific classes for our younger supporters. We have wanted to do for a long time and it is something the whole team is really passionate about.

“To kick start the programme we would like to invite everyone aged from 7-15 to come down and attended these classes for free until the end of the month. This is a new project for us and we would love to see lots of new faces, as well as some familiar ones.”

BOOK IN RECEPTION, ONLINE OR BY CALLING 01522 304400 AND GET ACTIVE AT ONE OF THE ABOVE CLASSES FOR FREE DURING MARCH AND APRIL!

The post New Lincoln Project Invites 7-15 Year Olds To Come And Get Active! appeared first on Active Nation.

The countdown has begun to the opening of Active Nation’s first indoor climbing experience at Green Bank Leisure Centre in South Derbyshire.

The 16-station attraction has been design and created by industry leaders Hang Fast Ltd using their new XHeight climbing range. The clip and climb design means that anyone, regardless of age or experience, can become a climbing hero!

Emma Twyford is one of the country’s top pro climbers and an XHeight ambassador. She said: “XHeight is a great and safe way to get kids in to climbing.”

The brilliant news is that this amazing adventure will be accessible to everyone – costing just £6 for an off peak session and £8 at weekends. This will include 1 hours climbing time as well as a 30 minute briefing beforehand to help you get to grips with the equipment and make the most of your time in the zone.

The installation of the climbing zone has formed part of a £1million redevelopment of the venue which has seen party rooms, a studio and community areas also created within Grove Hall. It has also seen the installation of a brilliant new Wattbike indoor cycling studio, the replacement of the sports hall floor and the poolside and spectator areas revamped.

Active Nation’s Simon Ricketts said: “These really are exciting times for Green Bank Leisure Centre and this investment in the climbing zone is creating huge interest from across the country – it is becoming a major tourist attraction before it’s even completed!

“We are all really proud of the transformation Grove Hall has undertaken and we can’t wait to show it off and see it in use, so please come down and see for yourself. Everything will be completed and open to the public during the half term holidays.”

Don’t worry if you’re not a supporter at Green Bank Leisure Centre as the climbing centre will be open to all and is already attracting a lot of attention from schools planning adventure days for pupils, businesses looking at future corporate days and people looking to plan birthday parties and other celebrations.

With a 10% discount for anyone booking all 16 stations it really is a great option for a birthday or office party!

For more information and to see how we can get you climbing and active give us a call on 01283 216269 or simply pop in the next time you’re passing.

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