Children from two city nurseries have been cooking up some tasty treats to celebrate Walking and Wheeling Week.
The youngsters and staff from ‘Growing Up Green’ Day Nurseries on Beaconsfield Villas and Preston Road have been working with their chefs to create a selection of healthy travel themed snacks.
The nurseries are among 40 early years settings (more than 2,500 children), taking part in a Walking and Wheeling Week, organised by Brighton & Hove City Council’s school travel team, to tie in with Walk to School Week.
The event encourages parents, carers, children and staff to walk, scoot and cycle to their nursery, pre-school, playgroup or childminder. Those unable to walk the whole way are encouraged to walk at least the last 5 minutes of their journey, reducing traffic in the area around the setting.
Children from Young Friends Nursery in Hove are also taking part in a variety of ways, from giving the children activity cards with games to play on their walk home, to their ‘Snap Happy’ activity, where the children take pictures of their favourite things on their journey home. The children will also be taking part in a Treasure Hunt at their allotment during the week.
Staff and children from Brighton and Hove Prep will be holding a scooter day, and are also taking part in the Walk 4 Wildlife on Friday afternoon (19th) with the rest of the school to raise money for the West Sussex Wildlife Trust.
In addition, more than 10,000 children from 33 primary schools are taking part in this year’s Walk to School Week, a national campaign aimed at getting children and their families walking to school, from May 15 to 19.
Piers the Meercat, the Walk to School mascot will be kept busy visiting school assemblies to remind children of the benefits of walking to school and encouraging them to take part.
Piers also features in SMILE, (Smile, Move, Imagine, Learn and Enjoy) an animated, video made with help from schoolchildren in Brighton & Hove to promote the benefits of an active journey to school. The video explains how walking, scooting, cycling (and even skateboarding) are great ways to keep happy and healthy on the journey to school.
The SMILE video promotes the five ways to happiness to school children. It demonstrates that whilst being active on their way to school they can practise 5 simple things to keep themselves healthy and happy.
The film was made last year with the help of pupils from Carlton Hill Primary School, St Andrews CE Primary School and Hove Junior School.
www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/health/public-health-schools-programme/five-ways-smile-way-school