The Big Step
This September, get fit and healthy whilst enjoying our wonderful scenery and take a Big Step around Wales. Set yourself an individual goal and know you'll be contributing to our challenge to walk, run or cycle around the circumference of Wales.
To take part in The Big Step is to help us combat rising loneliness amongst older people, to be part of our biggest ever fundraising drive and to celebrate the beauty of Wales. Walk along the wonderful Wales Coast Path, from South to North Wales then southbound via the historic Offa’s Dyke Trail. You may choice to do your steps at home or walking around the garden. However you get involved, you'll be making a huge difference.
You'll get a free t-shirt once you've hit £50 in donations. Once you've signed up we'll send you details to join our community group on Facebook.
All we ask is that you record your step total or mileage and enter them onto our online portal or complete our daily step or miles planner, which you can download from below, and send us your totals.
How your fundraising makes a difference
The donations you raise through sponsorship will go directly to funding two of our major lifeline services for older people. Both services rely on donations and fundraising to make them sustainable.
Age Cymru Advice
Last year, Age Cymru dealt with more than 31,500 enquiries, through our free, confidential and impartial service providing older people with invaluable information and advice on their rights and entitlements across the range of issues that older people experience.
£10 raised could be used to answer an advice enquiry to an older person.
Friend in Need - telephone befriending service
Our groundbreaking volunteer-led service provides vital weekly friendship and support to people who are living alone. Fundraising helps us to keep our vital contact services going. Last year our wonderful team made more than 11,600 friendship calls to older people across Wales.
£15 could support friendship calls to two older people every week.
Covid-19 has highlighted the issue of loneliness among older people, but many of the people Age Cymru work with were already lonely and many remain isolated and lonely even after lockdown. Through The Big Step, you're helping us to address these issues by fundraising for our services.
The facts
In Wales 21% of people aged 60 - 64 live alone, rising to 60% of people over the age of 85 and 91,000 older people in Wales describe themselves as consistently lonely. If not addressed, the problems of loneliness in older people can only get worse as Wales has an ageing population, and this inevitably means more people living alone.
By 2030, under a decade away, it's projected that there will be more than 1,008,000 older people in Wales - that’s 33% of the total population.
The Big Step fundraising packs and step / miles planner
In partnership with:
