Don’t miss your chance to play the most exciting game in Merton    

· by · in Borough of Sport, Children, Competitions, Environment, Health and social care, Older people, Parks and green spaces, Public health, Sport and leisure, Transport. ·
Beat the Street

The Beat the Street Merton game launched on 15 March with more than 14,670 participants signing up in its first week.  Together these participants have walked, cycled, and rolled their way to more than 63,000 miles.

Beat the Street Merton is a free, interactive game that encourages people to walk, cycle and wheel for prizes. It takes place for six weeks, until Wednesday 26 April. It forms part of the Actively Merton programme in our Borough of Sport, which supports people to be more physically and socially active.

Residents may have seen that beeping and flashing sensors called Beat Boxes have been placed on lampposts around the borough. Beat Boxes help participants explore the local area and all it has to offer while developing the habit of regular exercise. To take part, players need a card which can be collected from one of the distribution centres listed at www.beatthestreet.me/merton. Alternatively, players over the age of 13 can download the free Beat the Street app to play the game on their phone.

The first week of the game, themed Go Play is all about getting to grips with the rules. Subsequent weeks have a different focus, from Go Explore to Go Wild and Go Travel.

Players can join a school, community, or a workplace team or a team for one of the two official charities of the Mayor of Merton, Councillor Joan Henry – the Dons Local Action Group and the Jimmy Asher Foundation.

Councillor Caroline Cooper-Marbiah, Cabinet Member for Sport and Heritage, said:  “Beat the Street Merton is off to a great start! Great to see residents exploring the landmarks in Merton and being active. This proves that being sporty or active does not always mean hitting the gym. Thanks to everyone who has signed up so far. Please keep encouraging your friends, family, and neighbours to get involved and join your team.”

Dr Laura Jarvie, GP at the Nelson Medical Practice and Merton Primary Care Development Lead for NHS South West London, said: “As a local GP I was really excited about what Beat the Street could mean for my patients. But my enthusiasm for this project escalated when my three kids came home from school last week in a frenzy of excitement about walking, running and cycling around the local area and exploring new places. I hope families across the borough will share this excitement for a game which really is for everyone regardless of age or ability.”

Beat the Street Merton has been commissioned by Merton Council and NHS South West London with support from the National Lottery via Sport England. It is being delivered by Intelligent Health.

More information is available at www.beatthestreet.me/merton and on social media at @BTSMerton

How to play

To play, you can use a card or our Beat the Street App (Age 13+). 

 1.       Create your Beat the Street account on our website at beatthestreet.me/Merton or by downloading our Beat the Street App via Google Play or the App Store.

 2.       Add family members, and register a card to player profiles. Set up a team or join an existing one.

 3.       Start your journey. Find your nearest Beat Box using a paper or digital map and hover your card at the contactless Beat Box until it beeps and flashes. If playing with the app, tap the Beat Box icon on your phone and swipe to collect points.

 4.       Visit two Beat Boxes within an hour and collect 10 points for each Beat Box – this is 20 points for the journey.

 5.       Carry on your journey. Score 10 points for each extra Beat Box you visit.

By playing with the Beat the Street App, you get access to exclusive features! Collect gems, choose an avatar to represent you in-game and raise the competition in your team leaderboards.