Oldham Active

06/10/2026

We've been shortlisted! 🏆

We're excited to announce that we have been shortlisted for not one, not two, but THREE awards at the Seriously Social Awards 2026!

We have been shortlisted for the following categories:

🏆 Lifetime Achievement Award
Our CEO, Stuart Lockwood, has been nominated for the Lifetime Achievement Award due to dedicating more than 25 years to improving health, wellbeing and opportunities for communities through leadership roles across the leisure, wellbeing and social enterprise sector.

🏆 Outstanding Employee Award
Rachel Holloway was shortlisted for the Outstanding Employee Award due to her passion, expertise and unwavering commitment to transform the lives of hundreds of cardiac rehabilitation participants across Oldham. For more than 20 years, Rachel has dedicated her career to supporting people recovering from heart conditions, helping them regain confidence, improve their health and rebuild their lives through the REACH Exercise Referral Scheme.

🏆 Community Award
We are shortlisted for the Community Award due to our commitment to meeting people where they are and building strong local partnerships. Oldham Active Communities is helping to reduce health inequalities and create healthier, more connected communities across Oldham.

We are incredibly proud of our team; we wouldn't be nominated without their hard work to build us up to where we are today.

Good luck to all other shortlisters 🍀

05/10/2026

Oldham Active's Train and Treat Bingo 💀

BOO! Looking to get frighteningly fit this October? Our Train and Treat Bingo is the ultimate Halloween bingo challenge: take on 15 spine-chilling activities to win a selection of perilous prizes for staying active this spooky season.

🎃 How to play Halloween bingo
To join in this spooktacular opportunity to work out, simply grab a bingo card from reception. When you complete one of the 15 chilling activities, creep over to reception to get a stamp added to your bingo card.

The more you add, the closer you get to earning each prize.

Each level has 5 activities. You must complete all activities in Level 1 before moving on to Level 2, and all activities in Level 2 before starting Level 3. For example, you can’t add a stamp to a Level 2 activity until you’ve finished all 5 activities in Level 1… Dead simple, isn’t it!

Learn more about our Train and Treat Bingo below!

https://www.oldhamactive.co.uk/memberships/train-and-treat-bingo/

04/10/2026

Three Weeks To Go 🎃

With the Oldham Halloween Half just around the corner, we're discussing the benefits of running. In our latest blog post, we examine why people run, running trends for 2026, and how the Oldham Halloween Half Marathon could be the perfect challenge for you.

Read more below!

https://www.oldhamactive.co.uk/news/the-benefits-of-running-halloween-half-marathon/

03/10/2026

⚠️ Important Notice: Essential Maintenance – Chadderton Wellbeing Centre

Floor refurbishment work is taking place in the main entrance from 20th to 27th October. Stairs will be used to access most Oldham Active facilities during this time.

⚠️ Temporary access
All areas, Pool, Sauna, Gym and Studio can be accessed via the door to the left of the main entrance.

• Staff will be onsite throughout to signpost members to the right route
• The lift will be available on request for anyone who needs it.
• Where possible, please avoid bringing prams or buggies during this period, as access will be limited.
• No Easyline classes will run during this period.

The female-only gym, main gym, swimming lessons, and group exercise classes will all continue to operate as usual.

⚠️ Card Payments only
During this period, we can only accept card payments; cash will not be accepted. If you'd prefer to pay in cash, you can pay in advance at any of our other sites and, leading up to the maintenance date, 20th October, at Chadderton.

We apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience while we carry out this work. Normal access resumes on 28th October.

01/10/2026

Time to vote for your favourite staff!

We're opening the voting for the Oldham Active Staff Awards 2026 early to give you even more time to vote for the staff members who have made a difference to you!

We need YOUR help to celebrate the incredible people who make a difference to your health and wellbeing every day!

⭐ Why Your Vote Matters
At Oldham Active, we live by our values, and customer care is at the heart of everything we do. If a member of our team has supported your fitness journey, or simply brightened your day, now's the time to show your appreciation.

Vote in Three Categories:

🏋️ Class Instructor – That motivating voice who pushes you to achieve more
👟 Junior Activity Instructor – The person who inspires our young people to stay active
🌟 Frontline Staff – The friendly face who makes every visit welcoming

Vote now!
Class Instructor - https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/Yaua02NF5P

Junior Instructor - https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/PRyKm4UfWP

Frontline Staff - https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/A4iJsytiuh

01/10/2026

Don’t miss out on seeing Sir Kevin Sinfield running through Oldham today as part of his 7 in 7: The Grand Finale to raise vital funds for motor neurone disease charities.

Check out the attached post to see his full route 👏

A massive good luck to Sir Kevin Sinfield today 💪👏👏 as he brings his 7 in 7: The Grand Finale through Oldham as part of the fifth leg of his epic endurance challenge to raise money for motor neurone disease charities.

See below for the full route and timings 👇🏃‍♂️‍➡️

29/09/2026

Managing Expectations in the Gym 🏋️‍♀️

Understanding how progress in the gym works and learning to value more than just physical changes is key to staying motivated and getting the most from your time in our gyms.

Read our article below, where we break down gym expectations.

https://www.oldhamactive.co.uk/news/managing-expectations-in-the-gym/

27/09/2026

From Land's End to John O'Groats 💙

Recently, Oldham Active member George and his dad Allan walked the entire length of Great Britain!

Starting from Land's End in Cornwall, they walked all the way to John O'Groats in the Scottish Highlands. The journey took them 85 days, covering 1267 miles at an average of 15 miles a day!

The challenge included wild camping for most of the trip, with some interesting spots, including sleeping on train station platforms in Wales and camping in someone's back garden. The route took them through some beautiful places, from the South West Coastal Path with lovely sea views to the West Highland Way in Scotland.

The father-and-son duo raised over £7,000 for Samaritans in the process. We think this is absolutely brilliant, and we're so grateful they shared this fantastic story with our team.

Great work, both of you!

25/09/2026

Holding Back The Tide 🥉

Oldham Active member Chris Davies picked up two bronze medals for Great Britain in the European Masters Mountain Running Championships, held in Transylvania, Romania, this September. He secured third place in the over-70s category in both the uphill-only race, with 800m of climbing, and in the 12k forest trail race.

Chris took up running in 1968, aged 14, and has now been racing for 58 years. A member of Saddleworth Runners, he clocked 1 hour 37 mins in a half-marathon last year, but for decades his focus has been hill and mountain running at every distance. Although often to be found out on the local hills, he puts in a number of quality sessions at Saddleworth Gym each week.

“There’s no escaping the reality that, at my age, the tide is going out,” said Chris. “It doesn’t seem long since I thought it would be a bad day if I couldn’t finish the parkrun in Alexandra Park in less than 20 minutes. These days I struggle to beat 22 minutes.”

“Fitness doesn’t fully compensate for the natural reduction in muscle strength, but work in the gym can slow the decline. I like to do a couple of BodyPump sessions each week, in addition to reminding my legs how to run fast in speed bursts on the treadmill. I’m luckier than many older runners in that my knees still work without pain, so I hope to have a few years of hill racing left in me.”

This is a fantastic achievement; keep up the great work, Chris! ⭐

25/09/2026

The new pitch has been delivered through a partnership between The Pinnacle Learning Trust (PLT), the Premier League, The FA and the Government’s Football Foundation, with Oldham Active and PlayFootball

https://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/139/news/275/the-hathershaw-college-unveils-state-of-the-art-sports-facility