To celebrate National Fitness Day 2025, a new blog series shares the success of ukactive members that have helped power the campaign. The series explores the benefits that getting involved in National Fitness Day can have for organisations and their communities.
In this blog, Deborah Holmes, Strategic Manager for Wellbeing, Sport and Leisure at Durham County Council, shares their plans for 2025, including running a month-long campaign, and shares how the day is important for the wider health and wellbeing of the community.
Why Durham County Council is going large on National Fitness Day 2025
Too many people in County Durham are missing out on the health, happiness, and sense of belonging that regular movement brings. Closing this gap is central to Durham County Council’s Moving Together Physical Activity Strategy, which aims to encourage people to move more, in ways that suit them, for fitness, health, productivity and connection.
National Fitness Day is a key date in our calendar. It’s an opportunity to showcase the many ways to be active across the county, highlighting that it’s never too early or too late to start.
Building on the momentum of major campaigns is nothing new for us. We inspired more than 10,000 people to get involved in a variety of activities as part of this year’s Durham City Run Festival. We know that if we can unite people under a common campaign, we can encourage movement, especially amongst those who are traditionally hard to engage.
Durham County Council has supported National Fitness Day for many years, and our activity grows each year. In 2024, we extended the campaign to a week-long celebration, which saw more than 600 people take part in activities ranging from Couch to 5K groups to family bowling sessions. We doubled the number of 7-day passes redeemed compared with the previous year, and saw hundreds of residents trying our programmes for the first time. The more we invest in National Fitness Day, the greater the return we can expect in community engagement.
We’re going even bigger for 2025. For the first time, National Fitness Day will form part of a month-long celebration of movement across County Durham. Throughout September, we will offer free opportunities for all ages and abilities, including:
- 7-day passes for gyms, pools, classes, and our Move Hubs with power-assisted equipment
- Virtual classes at four leisure centres
- Family activities such as ten-pin bowling, soft play, adventure play, and free weekend swimming
- Weekend specials like climbing, TAG active, and Abbey Adventure sessions
- Community programmes from walking groups and Couch to 5K launches to gentle exercise classes in village halls.
By making many opportunities free and accessible we will enable everyone to find an activity they enjoy. We especially want to engage those who haven’t yet experienced what we have to offer and show that movement can enhance everyone’s life.
We’re also using National Fitness Day to highlight how our leisure centres are true community hubs, welcoming spaces where people of all ages and abilities can be active and social, whether regaining confidence after illness, playing walking football, or spending time together as a family.
Promotion is vital to the success of our efforts. We will work with partners in health, education, and community services and run social media and local press campaigns. And we will align with ukactive’s “Powered by You” theme, reinforcing that movement is powered by families, friends, and communities coming together.
By using National Fitness Day to channel our efforts and break down entry barriers, we can encourage more people to engage. Declaring September a month of movement will help to inspire long-term behaviour change that will benefit the health, wellbeing, and future of everyone living and working in County Durham.
To help you get involved in National Fitness Day this year, we’ve put together a digital toolkit full of helpful resources designed to help you plan and promote your National Fitness Day plans – download the toolkit here.
If you have previously taken part in National Fitness Day and want to share your story, please get in touch by emailing: press@ukactive.org.uk.
For more information, visit www.nationalfitnessday.com and stay up to date by following the campaign on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.
