New data published by Active Cumbria shows that 3,400 players from 117 schools used the virtual Street Tag app to keep physically active during 2022.
Collectively players using the app walked 925,000,000 steps, travelled 1,006,545 miles and collected 1,900,000 tags.
Street Tag is a mobile app that turns the world around the user into a virtual playground. Points are gained by actively travelling to and from places, in addition to scanning virtual tags that have been scattered throughout the community. Tags can be found on the route to school, in local parks, at local events and more or less anywhere and everywhere making it really easy to join in the fun.
The data also shows that 86% of Street Tag players in Cumbria do not take part in any other sport, fitness or dance activities with the virtual app being their go to choice for keeping active as part of their everyday life. And that 82% of players are now walking for 30 minutes or more a day, an increase of 8%.
With support from Cumbria County Council and New Balance a licence for Street Tag has been purchased by Active Cumbria, part of Cumbria County Council’s Public Health Team, and schools are invited to sign up to the Street Tag app for free.
Schools collect points as a team and can monitor their achievements and scores against other schools in the county, with certificates and prizes awarded to top performing schools for each season.
The latest data also shows the most popular day of the week for players to use the app are Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday which is particularly encouraging to see players engaging in Street Tag at the weekend in addition to during the school week whilst on the school run.
Active Cumbria Development Officer and Street Tag Programme Lead, Oliver Carswell said; “It’s really encouraging to see this new data released which demonstrates the positive impact the Street Tag programme is having on physical activity levels of children in schools across Cumbria so far. Not only is Street Tag helping to instil new active travel habits whilst on the school run such as walking or cycling to school it is also encouraging families to be physically active together at the weekends whilst out and about in the local community”.
South Walney Infant School is one of the schools embracing keeping active via the Street Tag app. Mrs Callister said; “We’ve got everyone involved parents, children, staff and governors. Lots of staff members are looking for tags when on weekends away and you see parents walking past school tagging. Street Tag is great for getting the whole school community involved in keeping active.”
Cllr Deborah Earl, Cumbria County Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Health and Communities, said “It’s so important that we as a council look to support and encourage new ways for our families to be active every day. I’d like to thank the Local Committees for funding the Street Tag programme which has presented a new and creative opportunity for our communities to engage in regular physical activity in a fun and modern way. We are really encouraged by the results in this latest set of data.”
Research from the latest National Childhood Measurement Programme 2020/21 shows that on leaving primary school over 40% of children in Cumbria are obese or overweight.
Street Tag is just one of the wide range of initiatives provided by Active Cumbria to support schools with physical activity both in and outside of the school day.
Season 5 of Street Tag runs to March 1st and schools interested in signing up for season 6 onwards can contact Oliver Carswell at Active Cumbria by e-mail to oliver.carswell@cumbria.gov.uk
