The Rotary Club of Hebden Bridge is pleased to award a £350 grant to Sowerby Walkers and Ramblers, a community walking group based in the upper Calder Valley. Established in December 2022, the group organises free weekly walks to promote physical fitness, wellbeing and mental health for adults of all ages.

The group has grown rapidly, with around 1,800 followers on Facebook, approximately 200 people on its WhatsApp group and a solid core of about 160 regular walkers, typically attracting 15–20 people per walk ranging in age from their 20s to their 80s. Most walks are centred on Hebden Bridge and Mytholmroyd and extend along the valley from Sowerby Bridge to Todmorden, using accessible meeting points such as railway stations.

Sowerby Walkers and Ramblers is run entirely by volunteers, with seven walk leaders sharing responsibility for planning and leading walks. Most of these leaders are already trained in first aid and some have completed formal walk leader training.

How the grant will be used:

• £100 to create an accessibility fund to subsidise bus and train fares for walkers on low incomes or those struggling with the cost of living, so that financial circumstances do not prevent anyone from joining a walk.

• £100 to replace and replenish essential first aid kits and navigation equipment such as maps and compasses, ensuring leaders are properly equipped to look after participants’ safety.

• £30 to renew the group’s Ordnance Survey digital mapping subscription, which is used to plan every walk and helps leaders to navigate safely and confidently.

• £120 to fund a two‑day first aid training course for a newly appointed walk leader, so that all seven leaders can provide robust first aid if needed while out on the hills.

Together with the group’s modest existing reserves, this support is expected to help sustain core costs through to the end of 2027.

Leader Adrian Horton said:

 " We are so grateful to the Rotary Club of Hebden Bridge for the work they do to support charitable organisations like ours. 

Thank you, Thank you Thank you! "

For info on Sowerby Walkers and Ramblers, please visit https://sowerbywalkers.com/

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