A Hucknall walking group are getting back into their stride after starting up again following a long lay off due to the Coronavirus restrictions.

'Hucknall Taking Steps' meet twice a week with a 45 minute 'Easy Walks' group on a Monday and a two hour more challenging 'Wilder Places' group on a Wednesday.

The group began nearly 20 years ago and originally only had around half a dozen members; its walks now regularly attract over 30 people.

Speaking exclusively to Hucknall Nub News, chairperson, Vivien Ackroyd, said: "It's a popular group, it's a friendly group, new walkers that come we make them welcome. They all said when we got back, I couldn't wait for this to happen; I find that satisfying."

As well as local walks the group use public transport to go further afield and explore other parts of the city. Some of the more popular walks among members have been at iconic places such as Wollaton Park and Attenborough Nature Reserve.

It isn't just Nottingham that the group have explored together. An invitation from MP Mark Spencer saw the group given a tour of The Houses of Parliament. Before he became Chief Whip, he also occasionally joined them on some of their walks.

The group also organised coach trips and Christmas socials pre-Covid and as restrictions continue to ease there is hope that these will resume before long.

One of the members who has been attending since the group was in its infancy is Janet Spencer, who began in 2002, just after she had retired. She said: "You're a bit lonely and everything else, you've lost all your work friends and everything you used to do with those, so I started on this walk and made loads of new friends ever since."

Of the group having to close during Covid times, she added: "It was awful, I really missed it. I really needed this."

Janet Braybrook, another of the longest serving members said: "It's just nice to be out in the fresh air."

Many of the members, when allowed to, walked in pairs or small groups during the height of lockdown to stay healthy and fill the void left by the group not being able to meet.

For a lot of the group walking is a real passion and boosts both their physical and mental health. However, the social benefits of the group are abundantly clear. The happiness that social contact and long-standing friendships bring is heartening. Many of the members live alone and without the group wouldn't see anyone else that day. Many of them admit that they wouldn't have met the people they regard as their closest friends in any other walk of life.

The only issue the group faces is a lack of walk leaders who plan the route and are responsible for the welfare of all the walkers.

Ms Ackroyd said: "Margaret Cook and myself are walking every walk, because we're either back marking or leading because people are getting older and they're dropping out from being walk leaders.

"It's a shame because I am finishing next June. I've done 14 years on the committee, various positions, and I've had enough because your time's not your own.

"People don't want the responsibility, they just want to turn up, go for a walk and then forget about it."

Mrs Braybrook added: "When we first started there were no rules or regulations. I think the members who organise everything, they've got too much responsibility. They don't get to enjoy the walk as they should do in my mind."

All walk leaders have to undertake a one day course provided by the Council which covers first aid, creating a safe route and carrying out effective risk assessments.

The hope within the group is that more people will volunteer as walk leaders which will enable the responsibility to be shared and mean less strain on members who are currently leading every single walk.

Anyone who wishes to join the group is encouraged to arrive outside Hucknall Library at around 9:50 for a 10:00 departure on Mondays and Wednesdays.