New outdoor exercise equipment has been installed on a village's community playing field.
People in Kessingland, near Lowestoft, had suggested to parish councillors that an outdoor gym facility would be a great addition to the area.
And after successfully being awarded £8,000 through the Tesco Bags of Help initiative, new exercise equipment has been installed near the existing children's playground, teen shelter, skate park and multi-use games area (MUGA) at the Francis Road community playing field.
The exercise equipment – which is now ready to be used by the whole community – provides huge health benefits, as the village previously didn't have any gym or exercise facilities.
During consultations on the Kessingland Neighbourhood Plan a questionnaire was completed, with interest expressed in an outdoor gym for all age groups on the community playing field. Kessingland Parish Council subsequently submitted a bid for funding through Tesco and Groundwork's initiative, which sees grants of £12,000, £10,000 and £8,000 – all raised from the 5p bag levy – awarded to outdoor community projects.
In December, the parish council was awarded £8,000 – and last week the new facility was unveiled.
Liam Martin, parish council chairman, said: 'Installing the equipment will meet with the requirements expressed by the community during the consultation on the Kessingland Neighbourhood Plan and promote health and wellbeing across all age groups in Kessingland, which has to be a good thing.'
Parish councillor Brian Kite, who oversaw the project, said: 'I would like to thank the local community for voting for the outdoor gym and enabling us to install this fantastic facility in the heart of Kessingland for local people to use. We could not have delivered this project without the support of the community'.
The outdoor gym, installed by Caloo Limited of Hemel Hempstead, is comprised of six pieces of equipment including a leg press (two user station), an air walker (one user station), a chest press (two user station), a skier (two user station), an arm bike (one user station) and a cross rider (one user station).
Instructions and guidance for using the gym have also been posted on a sign next to the equipment.
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