New Shokk Interactive Youth Gym facility opens in Littleborough

The new Shokk Gym in Littleborough

Young people across the Rochdale borough are being encouraged to become more active with the opening of Rochdale’s first Interactive youth gym facility. The groundbreaking fitness facility has been installed at the Littleborough Sports Centre and its doors are now open to the public.

The state-of-the-art facility, called the SHOKK U18’s Youth Gym, was unveiled at a special opening when young people from Littleborough had the chance to put the new equipment through its paces.

The project was put in place based on consultation with the Learners amp; Young People Service and the Youth Empowerment Team, involving local young people in the decision making process. This team works closely with young people to encourage and develop activity and choice within the borough, from this consultation a youth gym was deemed high on a list of priorities. The facility was fully funded by the Youth Capital Fund with Link4Life, the brand name of Rochdale Boroughwide Cultural Trust operating the facility.

Designed for young people aged between eight and 18, the SHOKK Youth Gym features unique cardio vascular, resistance and interactive equipment designed specifically for young people. Occupying an area within the leisure centre, the SHOKK gym provides a dedicated place for young people to get fit and have fun in a safe, secure environment under the supervision of qualified staff.

The Gym includes:

• Multiplayer dance mats giving children the chance to get fit while sharpening up their dance moves
• Vew-do balance boards –  which are similar to skateboards and give kids the chance to improve their balance
• Unique youth gym equipment, such as fluid machines, resistance machines and functional weights designed for children

The Mayor of Rochdale, Councillor Peter Evans, who officially opened the SHOKK gym, said: “This is a superb facility for young people and I look forward to opening more of these facilities across the borough. It is great that we are investing a substantial amount of money on services for young people and that they have had a say in what the money should be spent on."

Craig McAteer, Link4life Managing Director, added: “Our objective is to significantly increase the activity levels of young people throughout the borough of Rochdale. The SHOKK gym will support the other sporting and activity programmes we are running and is planned to be one of three youth gyms we will be opening over the coming year. Although we still encourage it, we understand that young people today aren’t doing enough traditional outdoor activity and have different tastes and requirements to previous generation."

Councillor Dale Mulgrew, Rochdale's Cabinet portfolio holder for health said: "This is a great development which will create opportunities for mass participation in physical activity for young people. The Council is firmly committed to the ‘Every Child Matters’ agenda and the availability of these new facilities will help young people embark on a more active lifestyle and should help us meet our health objectives.

Kieran Murphy, Marketing Director from SHOKK, the specialised company that is supplying the equipment, said: "It has always been SHOKK's objective to bring modern physical activity solutions to young people, making it accessible to all. The SHOKK concept provides a fun and interactive activity solution for al young people no matter what age, size or background. Walking into the area at Littleborough will provide a unique experience, essentially, it’s a space designed with young people in mind – somewhere they can identify with and a place they’ll want to hang out.”