Penny Lane Striders

With a pledge to ‘Get Liverpool running’ you can rest assured you’re in safe hands if you fancy lacing up your running shoes and clocking a few miles. It’s a great way to get or keep fit and healthy (physically and mentally) and training sessions are held every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6:45pm, starting at Garston Sports Centre.

Sessions are split into five ability groups, last for one hour, and are free to club members. Yes they’ve got some top class runners here and they compete in top competitions, but they say: “Some of us are fast, many of us less so, but that isn’t really what our club is about. We’re all striving to become better runners, but there is no pressure and certainly no elitism.” 

If you fancy giving it a go visit their website here or email pennylanestriders+membership@gmail.com.

Open water swimming

Of course it’s great jumping into your local pool, but how exhilarating would this be, embracing the wilder waters of the dock? Liverpool Watersports Centre reckons it’s another way to get fit, reduce stress and have fun and you can get involved whether you’re a beginner or an expert, and sessions return in April on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings.

There are a few safety rules and every open swimmer must register before getting in the water – but what a way to get a very different view of the city’s fabulous waterfront?! It costs from £5 per swim rising to £120 for a season pass.

For more information about swimming and/or registering call 0151 708 9322 or click here.

Continuing Education courses at Liverpool Uni

You’re never too old to learn – and there is plenty to interest you at the city’s uni which offers a diverse range of subjects and themes with a timetable of day-time and evening courses and, for those who struggle weekdays, Saturday courses.

You can choose to study at your own pace, accreditation – where offered – is entirely your choice, so there’s no pressure. You can learn to progress, to attain a new skill or simply for fun; subjects range from artificial intelligence, to Roman pottery, Film Noir, Machiavelli and Georgian Liverpool, and there are short courses, lectures and events – some of them free.

For prospectus info and how to enrol, click here.

Learn a new language

So, we can all order a pint of beer or a glass of wine when we’re on our holidays, but how much better would it be to engage in a proper conversation – and not always expect everyone else to speak our language, whatever that might be. Liverpool University has courses on offer but there are other companies like Cactus, which runs a range of 10-week courses in North John Street including French, Spanish, German and Japanese!

Also Chataway, led by former cabin crew member Sandra Scott who went on to study languages before becoming head of languages in a secondary school and then setting up Chataway with a variety of languages and learning styles to suit. It can boost confidence – or job prospects – and it can just be fun.

Flower Arranging

There’s nothing worse than a bunch of chrysanths or half a dozen roses unceremoniously shoved into a vase with little if any panache. If you’re saying it with flowers, this would hardly be perfect prose. So what about doing it properly and learn to arrange your beautiful bouquets better? Colleges across Merseyside run floristry courses – including Knowsley Community College – and The UK School of Floristry in Brookfield Drive, Aintree, has classes for beginners and beyond. More info here.

But florists across the city also run workshops and classes in flower arranging, including Bookers Flowers & Gifts in Booker Avenue which promises a ‘fun way to learn the basics of floral design and get tuition from a professional florist’ and The Dutch Flower Shop which offers half day sessions, providing everything you need to create your own arrangement to take home from its workshop in Sinclair Way, Prescot.Head to the Dutch Flower Shop school website here.

Learn to play the Ukulele

It’s not just George Formby who managed to master this popular stringed instrument, you can too. Ukulele Club Liverpool offers lessons at its Aigburth HQ for adults and children.

Why the ukulele? “It is portable, affordable, fun, easy to play, great for jamming with friends and encourages further music development once you have mastered the basics.” Oh, and its more subtle, sweet tones make practice bearable for you as a player and those you live with!

For more information or to book, click here.

Become an artist

Get creative and uncover your inner artist. The Bluecoat, Liverpool’s centre for contemporary arts, in School Lane has got a wealth of classes and courses to inspire you and skill you up.

There is a rolling programme of reasonably priced workshops and courses in screen printing or etching, which run almost continuously through the year and at various levels, and the Bluecoat has teamed up with dot-art Services to deliver a series of courses covering life drawing, painting, photography and other applied arts courses.

More information and cost can be found here.

Become a chocolatier

We’re all good at eating chocolates – but what about making them? The Chocolate Cellar offers a range of workshops led by its award-winning chocolatier, Bala Croman, from mastering tasting techniques, to making chocolate pieces and creating your very own truffles. Sessions are run at The Chocolate Cellar in Liverpool City Centre and at Claremont Kitchens on the Wirral, and workshops can be arranged for groups on chosen dates or for individuals on pre-arranged dates.

Best of all, everything you make will be packaged up so you can take it home. Yum.

For bookings and planned sessions, or to find out more call 0151 200 2202 or e-mail chocshop@thechocolatecellar.co.uk.

Go Potty

We’re not suggesting for one moment you attempt to recreate the scene from Ghost, but why not try your hand at pottery and maybe get behind the wheel? You can get creative and explore your artistic side and, perhaps, come away with something practical and useful.

Baltic Clay runs evening and weekend classes for the beginner or those brushing up on their skills. The Saturday class is maybe best for beginners offering three-hour sessions in which you could make a patterned tray, decorative tiles or a textured vase, all with expert help and guidance.

Find out more here.

Dance!

If you’ve been inspired by Strictly – and let’s face it, who hasn’t?! – why not get yourself on the floor and learning a few steps. Merseyside Dance Initiative could be the place to start, offering classes and opportunities for all ages, abilities and backgrounds.

It’s got a year-round programme of training, festivals and activities for communities around the Liverpool City Region and invites anyone and everyone to get involved. There’s a timetable of classes from tap to pole fitness, and there are even sessions to support people with health conditions like Parkinson’s. We’d definitely give it a ‘10’.

More info here.