Part of the LCR Impact Stories series, designed to amplify the great work being done by organisations across the city region.
Access to the right equipment shouldn’t prevent people from getting active. However, for many across the Liverpool City Region, the cost of sports gear remains a significant barrier to participation.
To tackle this inequality head-on, our partners at Active Wirral developed Kit Link, a community initiative focused on tackling local inequalities and promoting sustainability in sport.
To understand the strategic impact of the programme, we spoke with Fiona Hanik, Active Wirral’s Health Development Officer, and James Cole, Regional Development Manager (North West) for British Triathlon, to explore the impact this initiative is having on local sport.
Kit Link relies on the power of community sharing and accessible infrastructure.
“We have Kit Link donation stations in all our leisure centres,” Fiona explains.
“A donation station is somewhere people can bring their own old, pre-loved kit – whether it be sports kit, sports clothing, trainers, etc. – donate them, and then people can come in and pick them up for free.”
By setting up dedicated drop-off and pick-up points, Active Wirral has created a seamless cycle of giving and receiving.
The impact of Kit Link extends far beyond the items themselves. By tackling financial barriers head on, the initiative is actively creating the conditions for improved physical and mental wellbeing.
Take Emily, a 42-year-old Wirral resident who is visually impaired. For Emily, the high cost of adaptive equipment had compounded the daily challenges of getting active, leading to a period of inactivity and social isolation.
“I had very little motivation to get up and go,” Emily recalls.
But Active Wirral helped her change the story. By pairing her with guide runners and swimmers, and offering the practical, financial relief provided by Kit Link, her world opened up. As a result, she has been able to train for and take part in local triathlons.
“Because I’m visually impaired, it’s a lot harder for me to be able to get out and be active,” Emily explains. “I need specialist equipment, like a tandem, so that’s quite expensive. So being involved with Kit Link allowed me then to be able to get a trisuit, which was obviously one less thing for me to be able to try and afford.”
“Now,” she says, “I’m fitter, healthier, and more confident.”
This is exactly the kind of transformation that Kit Link is designed to facilitate. And it’s not exclusive to just one sport.
“We’ve had golf clubs and cricket bats… we’ve had clothes with labels still on,” says Fiona.
“It’s just the amount of people that come in, and you see them taking the clothes from the stands… they are so pleased and so thankful for what they can get.”
The forward-thinking approach of Kit Link has drawn the support of major national governing bodies like British Triathlon, who recognise the importance of a circular sporting economy and the change required to make sport more sustainable.
“At British Triathlon, we try and support the Kit Link programme,” says James Cole.
“We know that triathlon and triathletes need a lot of kit and equipment, and the opportunity to repurpose and recirculate some of that kit and give it a second life is incredible.”
James notes that this is about challenging the wider system to take responsibility. “It links in a lot with our sustainability work, and with trying to challenge the whole sporting sector to be more accountable and responsible in terms of keeping kit in circulation, and supporting wider initiatives at a local level as well.”
To ensure sustainable, accessible, and immediate impact for local residents, Active Wirral opted for a system built entirely on trust and simplicity.
“All we ask is people just sign out what their postcode is and what they’ve taken,” says Fiona. “So, you just come along and say, ‘I’ve taken a wetsuit and this is my postcode.'”
Behind the scenes, keeping the stations viable requires dedicated coordination. “We’ve got a Coordinator called Kirsten, who goes around and makes sure everywhere’s stocked up and that we’re expanding in the right places,” Fiona adds.
The Coordinator role is central to the project’s success. Fiona goes on to explain that, beyond restocking, Kirsten also records all the stock that has been recycled so they can demonstrate the scheme’s social value. And, working with local schools in areas of deprivation, Kirsten helps ensure pupils get the opportunity to access Kit Link donations.
This streamlined approach leads to measurable results, proving that trust-based systems work:
“We’ve got a great return on social value with the Kit Link project where it’s saved thousands of pounds.”
The key to Kit Link’s success is its simplicity. As a result, Active Wirral is in the process of expanding its approach, with plans to bring Kit Link stations to key community hubs and places where it’s needed most:
For providers in other boroughs looking to replicate this success, Kit Link serves as an adaptable blueprint.
The most effective first step is to look at your existing infrastructure – such as leisure centres or community hubs – and ask how you can introduce a simple, trust-based exchange that champions both your residents and the environment.
To find your nearest donation station, learn more about the programme, or explore how you might support similar initiatives in your borough, please visit the Active Wirral website.
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