By Callum Ludwig
The Yarra Centre and Reclink Australia have teamed up to deliver three new free fitness and activity opportunities for young people in the Upper Yarra.
Functional Training Sessions, Women’s Dane Fit and Swim and Gym sessions started in May and are open for new members.
Community Engagement and Inclusion Coordinator at the Yarra Centre Sandra Kelly said a lot of people in the younger age group are not aware of what there is within their local community.
“We hold Community Network forums twice a year and one of the big things that came out of our last forum was more to do with youth, mental health and just getting moving in general,” she said.
“The programs we’ve partnered with Reclink to offer are designed to break down some of the barriers by removing costs and even offering a women’s only class, it breaks down some of the barriers for getting young people moving.”
All the new opportunities are available for 16-25-year-olds and are funded through the VicHealth Future Active Program.
Yarra Ranges Sports Coordinator at Reclink Australia Michelle Farah Chalita said it is a way to engage people, a way for them to have another social network and to find a sense of belonging.
“Especially after Covid, engaging in the building of community and social networks has been very difficult so it’s bringing that back and getting people active and getting people out and about,” she said.
“There are people that want to help, there are people that want to see them succeed and there are people that want to see them doing better, it’s very important to be active and get out of your head.”
The Gym and Swim is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm, Women’s Dance Fit is on Mondays from 4.30pm to 5.30pm and the Functional Training Sessions are on Tuesdays from 4.30pm to 5.30pm.
“We’re 30 minutes from bigger places like Lilydale and Chirnside Park, where there’s more access to things, so more opportunities locally where kids don’t have to worry about transport or anything like that are really important,” Ms Kelly said.
“There’s plenty of things for them to do, but a lot of them would just look at the building and go ‘I’m not going in there’, at the end of the day, it’s up to them whether they participate or they want to use it but giving them the opportunity is what’s important.”
