Andrew Beech picked up UK Coaching’s 2019 Community Coach of the Year Award thanks to his work as a personal trainer and as a coach on Enable Leisure and Culture’s Active Well-being programme. He provides one-to-one guidance and support for people with severe mental health conditions and ensures that each programme is tailored for the individual’s long-term needs.
His work is all about supporting people to fit physical activity into their lives in a way that works for them, empowering them to improve their physical health, mental health and well-being in the process.
“I wasn’t very good academically, but I was always good at being outdoors,” Andrew recalls, adding that he would always be happy to join in an impromptu game of any sport. It’s that mindset that now guides his coaching.
“I like simple things,” he says. “If I’m hanging out with kids and someone throws a ball, let’s do that, let’s play something they’d actually be interested in.”