Community Partners
Help us reach the people who might never walk into a gym on their own.Â
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Community Strength Network exists to help people overcome the first barriers to becoming more active.
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By working with organisations already connected to their communities, we can help more people discover that support.
It all starts with connection.
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You may already know someone who wants to become more active but doesn't know where to begin. They may lack confidence, feel uncomfortable in a gym environment or simply find taking that first step alone difficult.
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You don't need to assess whether they are "eligible" for Gym Buddy. You don't need to make a formal referral. Sometimes simply letting someone know that support exists is enough.
There are lots of ways to be part of the network.
CONNECT
Help people in your community discover Gym Buddy and other CSN opportunities.
Help spread the word through your website, social media, newsletter, noticeboards or community networks.
SHARE
CONTRIBUTE
Offer knowledge, skills, facilities, introductions or other practical support that could help local activity grow.
COLLABORATE
Work with CSN to explore new ways of helping people become more active and connected in their community.
You don't need to do all of these. Sometimes one connection is enough to make a difference.
If you work with people, you could be part of this.
Community Strength Network isn’t looking for one particular type of partner. Organisations connected to people and communities take many different forms. You might be a local charity, community group, council service, housing organisation, employer, voluntary organisation, sports club or something completely different.
What matters isn’t what your organisation is called. It’s the connection you already have with people.
YOU KNOW PEOPLE
You work with or support people who might benefit from becoming more active, but who could find getting started difficult.
YOU KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY
You understand your local area and can help CSN reach people, organisations and opportunities we might otherwise miss.
YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO OFFER
That could be time, expertise, facilities, communications, introductions, funding or simply a willingness to help.
A network becomes stronger when people bring what they already have.
NO FORMAL REFERRAL NEEDED
You can simply tell someone about CSN and let them decide whether they’d like to get in touch.
Partnership without the paperwork.
Being a Community Partner doesn’t mean taking on responsibility for running Gym Buddy.
There is no requirement to assess participants, manage volunteers or deliver exercise support. CSN coordinates Gym Buddy and provides the information people need.
A Community Partner simply helps in whatever way makes sense for their organisation and community.
Partnership should make it easier to help — not create more work.
NO PROGRAMME TO DELIVER
CSN coordinates Gym Buddy. Partners aren’t expected to provide exercise programmes or supervise participants.
NO ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL COMMITMENT
Some partners may regularly connect people with CSN. Others might share information, offer a venue, make introductions or help occasionally.
What could partnership look like?
A local community group
Lets people it works with know that Gym Buddy exists and how they can contact CSN.
A local charity
Shares information with people who might want to become more active but lack confidence to start on their own.
A local health or wellbeing organisation
Makes people aware of Gym Buddy where it may compliment support that they already provide.
A sports or activity club
Helps spread the word, makes introductions or connects CSN with other people and organisations locally.
A community venue
Provides somewhere to display information or, where appropriate, space for an occasional CSN meeting or activity.Â
Another local organisation
Has an idea, connection, skill or resource that could help CSN reach and support more people.
Every partnership can look different. What matters is finding something useful that works for the people we're trying to support.
Could your organisation be part of the network?
You don’t need to know exactly what a partnership might look like. If your organisation works with people locally, has something it could contribute, or simply wants to find out more, we’d love to have a conversation.
No commitment. Just a conversation about how you might be able to help.