Thank You for Your Feedback: What You Told Us About the Five to Ten Group

Ian Fleming shares the results of the recent Five to Ten survey

A huge thank you to everyone who completed our recent survey! We received 83 responses — that’s over 50% of the Group, which is an amazing response rate and really shows how much you care about our walking community.

I’m delighted to share that, overall, you’re very satisfied with what the Five to Ten Group offers. You appreciate the variety of walks, the comfortable walking pace, the diverse interests within the group, the friendly atmosphere, and the clear communications and information we provide. It’s great to know that so many of you enjoy being part of the group!

That said, there are a few areas where your feedback has given us food for thought. Over the coming months, we’ll be reflecting on these and considering how to respond:

1. Walking More Often: Around 80% of you would like to walk at least every other month, but only 30% currently manage this. Some find that walks fill up quickly, making it hard to secure a place. We’re exploring ways to offer more walks to meet this demand.

2. Preferred Walking Days: While most are happy with the current Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday rotating schedule, or feel indifferent, Thursday remains the most popular day (75%). For those working full-time or who haven’t walked recently, weekends are more appealing. We’ll think about how to make the schedule as inclusive as possible.

3. What Makes Us Unique: Many of you also walk with other groups (72%), which is fantastic for staying active. However, we want to reflect on what makes the Five to Ten Group special and how we can highlight that.

4. Car Sharing: Although driving yourself is the preferred way to get to walks (49%), there’s some interest in car sharing (32%). We’ll consider how to make car sharing easier and more accessible.

5. Leading Walks: There’s a strong interest in leading walks (63%), which is fantastic! As I plan to lead fewer walks myself, we’ll be reaching out to those interested to help keep our programme vibrant.

6. Welcoming All Ages: Our group is mostly made up of retired members, which is great, but we want to be more welcoming to those who haven’t reached retirement yet.

Next Steps

To address your feedback thoughtfully, I’ll be forming a small Steering Group from across the wider community. We plan to meet in June, reflect over the summer, and decide on changes to shape next year’s walking programme. We’ll keep you updated on progress.

If you have any further thoughts or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to email me — your input is always welcome.

Thanks again for being part of the Five to Ten Group. Here’s to many more enjoyable walks together!