GM Walking and Wheeling Fund

The GM Walking and Wheeling Fund (GMWWF) Grants Programme is offering grants of up to £7,000 to VCSE organisations to deliver projects to get more people walking and wheeling this autumn and winter.

The fund aims to improve the health and wellbeing of communities in Greater Manchester by encouraging people who are less active or inactive to walk or wheel regularly. By wheeling, we mean using a wheelchair, mobility aid or pushing a pram. Sorry, cycling is not included.

The GMWWF also hopes to increase awareness of and engagement with, GM Walking: a hub of information and resources that recognises the important role walking and wheeling can play in increasing physical activity levels.

Funded by NHS GM through GM Moving, small grants of up to £2,000 and medium grants of up to £7,000 are available through 10GM to support activities that encourage people who are usually less active to start or increase the amount they regularly walk in winter 2025-2026.

All projects must encourage people who are usually less active or inactive to increase the amount they walk or wheel regularly. To achieve this goal, both the small and medium grant funds have specific criteria that must be met. Applications received after the deadlines will not be considered.

There are many ways an organisation could do this, for example by supporting people to take part in walking and wheeling groups; by working with schools, faith centres or workplaces to encourage active travel; or by recruiting and training Walking and Wheeling Champions to encourage people in the community to walk or wheel regularly.

This year, projects should demonstrate how their proposed project will link into the wider health and care system in their area, such as a local GP practice or family centre. You could do this by:

• Linking in with your local GP practice(s) for their help in promoting your walks to their patients and referring new walkers to you.
• Working with local family hubs, health visitors, midwifery teams or other health condition-specific teams (e.g. diabetes, healthy hearts, etc.) to co-design and promote your walks.
• Developing projects in collaboration with local partners to meet an unmet need, for example, a guided walk for people with sight loss, or leading a walk in a swimming pool for people who are more at risk of falling.

Priorities of the fund
All projects must encourage people who are less active or inactive to walk or wheel regularly.

Based on the most recent Sport England Active Lives data, we will consider applications from organisations wishing to support the following priority groups, which are statistically less likely to be active:

• People with a disability and/or long-term health condition
• People from lower socio-economic groups
• Asian, Black and Chinese people (and particularly adults of Muslim faith)
• Women (and particularly pregnant women and those with a child or children under one year old)
• Adults aged 65 and over

Funding is limited, so unfortunately, applications to support groups outside of these priorities will not be eligible for this funding.

Meet the Funder
To find out more about the funds and how to apply, Salford CVS (on behalf of 10GM) and GM Moving are hosting Meet the Funder sessions:
9 September, 5pm-6pm
10 September, 12pm-1pm
Register here 

The GM Walking and Wheeling fund is managed by Salford CVS on behalf of 10GM.