Birmingham City Council has received a Diversity and Equality prize for their Gym For Free initiative at the Guardian Public Services Awards 2009.

The initiative encouraged residents in the Ladywood Constituency to put on their gym wear and engage in regular, free exercise at council sporting facilities.

Speaking to the Guardian, broadcaster Jeremy Vine, who hosted the event, said: "By enabling all of its residents to use council sporting facilities for free, Ladywood has seen the number of gym users rise from 90 to 27,000 in just over a year - half of whom are women or from ethnic minority communities."

He added that the judges were impressed with how Birmingham challenged and broke down the barriers to exercise through the scheme, making exercise all-inclusive.

According to the NHS, it is important for people of all ages to exercise regularly. Women that put on their ladies fitness wear and live an active lifestyle are less likely to develop obesity, diabetes and heart disease. ADNFCR-2569-ID-19478372-ADNFCR

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