Oldham Community Leisure (OCL) is encouraging children to get more active by inviting them to join their mum or dad in fitness classes this spring.

The classes, including Zumba, Tai Chi, aerobics and Pilates, will be open to children from age 11, attending with a responsible adult who is participating in the class. The classes will be free for children who are junior members and available to pay as you go for non-members.

Alex Knibbs, fitness manager for OCL, said: "We believe that giving families the opportunity to exercise together makes it easier to adopt a healthier lifestyle.  Unlike many family outings, this one is healthy, low cost and fun! On a serious note, with the escalating obesity problems in this country, there has never been a better time to encourage young people to get more active, more often."

As well as OCL's family fitness initiative the leisure trust runs a number of outdoor activities to encourage young people to get fit whilst exploring the local countryside. With a recent report from the National Trust highlighting that UK children are losing contact with nature at a ‘dramatic' rate, and their health and education are suffering, OCL believes that it is crucial to help young people access the countryside more easily for activities which are healthy, safe and fun.