Happier, healthier living in Wigan through VR
Council’s Digital Wigan team tours community venues with virtual reality (VR) headsets so that resident can try fun activities to aid health and well-being.
Residents in Wigan are being offered free use of some cutting-edge tech to visit virtual worlds. The VR sessions offered by the Digital Wigan team include activities to suit all ages, and are part of the team’s wider remit to help people get online and gain more from being there. What’s more, the VR sessions support other initiatives in the region aimed at encouraging healthier living.
Photo by Stella Jacob
One activity is the virtual kitchen that helps participants to plan and then cook healthy meals. Then, through a partnership with Be Well Wigan, they can take away real recipe cards and buy the ingredients they need from the discounted food pantry in the community centre, enabling them to recreate the virtual means for real at home.
Another option is to use the VR headsets to visit virtual versions of much-loved holiday destinations – which has proven popular with senior residents who otherwise have limited mobility. At Wigan Athletic Community Trust’s over 55’s Extra Time group, 92 year-old Betty, used the VR set to go fell walking again in the Lake District.
Betty says: ‘It was lovely, it’s taken me back 20 years. I couldn’t have done this sort of thing when I was young and I really, really enjoyed it. Who would have thought I’d go up Loughrigg again at 92. I just wanted to stay there.’
At the same event, 77 year-old Carys and her husband, who is living with dementia, both used the headsets to step back in time. Carys says: ‘I requested if we could see a lake in the village where we both grew up. We’ve not been able to go back there for a number of years. It was amazing. It brought back so many lovely memories.’
The VR sets are popular with all ages. At a Better Connected Community Fun Day earlier this month, children and young people queued up to try virtual games. ‘It’s fantastic that everyone can have a go at community events like this, and it’s important because VR is already part of our lives and will become increasingly so in the future,’ says Daniel Cunningham, whose children took part. ‘It’s great that the team are making it accessible for the kids here today so that they can give it a go and try something new if they haven’t had that opportunity before.’
Wigan residents are invited to join a VR session to be held at the Higher Folds Community Centre on Monday, September 2 between noon and 2pm.
Cllr Nazia Rehman, Cabinet Member for Resources, Finance and Transformation at Wigan Council, says: ‘There are so many additional resources the digital world can offer, and it is a priority for us to introduce them to our communities in a welcoming, educational and fun environment. Our Digital Wigan team are on hand to help anyone overcome any worries or barriers they might have to accessing the technology and to help people discover that having a go at VR can not only be enjoyable, but can offer lots of social benefits, such as building confidence and introducing new skills.’
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