West Yorkshire Walk to School Challenge

West Yorkshire Walk to School Challenge 2026

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Welcome to the BetterPoints West Yorkshire Walk to School Challenge! Your school is taking part in something special a region-wide, interschool, leaderboard challenge to celebrate being active this term.

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Walk, wheel, cycle, scoot or Park & Stride to school from now to June 30th and help your school win great prizes.

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Everything you need to know is right here.

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How to get started

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First things first, if you haven't already, getting involved is quick and easy. Here's what you have to do:

Just download the free BetterPoints App from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
When asked if you have a referral code, enter WYWOW.
Select your school from the menu.
Walk, wheel, cycle, scoot or Park & Stride to school now until June 30th and the app will log your activity which will help you earn points for your school.
Encourage other parents, carers and teachers to join — the more people from your school who take part, the better your school's chance of winning!

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You probably have a few more questions though like what is BetterPoints? What's involved? How can I help my school win? Hopefully, this article will help answer all those questions.

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About BetterPoints

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What is BetterPoints?

By joining the challenge and helping your school win, you have to download and sign up to BetterPoints, but was it?

‍BetterPoints is a free rewards app that encourages people to walk, wheel, cycle and use public transport all while earning rewards and supporting good causes. It's funded by the West Yorkshire Combined Authority as a pilot programme and is open to anyone who lives, works or studies in Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds or Wakefield.

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Is it free?

Yes, completely free! The app is free to download and there's no subscription or hidden costs whatsoever.

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Who can take part?

Any parent, carer, guardian or member of school staff can sign up and take part. Children cannot use the app themselves but they can benefit every time an adult in their school community gets active on their behalf.

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When I join, do I become a user of BetterPoints West Yorkshire?

Yes you do. When you sign up to the school challenge, you will be automatically added into the BetterPoints West Yorkshire Challenge too. This means you can earn points for walking, wheeling, cycling and using public transport in West Yorkshire. You will earn points which you can redeem, like any user, for vouchers or donate to charities.

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The Walk to School Challenge 2026

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How does the challenge work?

Throughout May and June, the schools compete on a leaderboard. The points earned by parents, carers and staff from your school are counted together and the schools which earn the most points will win prizes at the end of the month. The challenge runs from 1st – 30th June 2026, including the half term break.

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What activities count?

The following activities all count towards the challenge:

Walking
Wheeling (including wheelchairs and mobility scooters
Cycling (including e-bikes)
Scooting
Park & Stride (see below)

Your activity must involve at least 10 minutes of active travel (that's about half a mile of walking, wheeling, cycling or scooting to school), and part of it must take place on a weekday between 7:00am and 09:30am. You can earn a school challenge point once per day for your journey to school. The points are then added together for the leaderboards.

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What is Park & Stride?

Park & Stride means parking your car a ten-minute walk from school and completing the last part of the journey on foot. It reduces traffic and road danger around the school gates, and gives your child the chance to be active on the way in. It counts towards the challenge just like walking the whole way!

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Won't the bigger schools with more pupils easily win?

The 30 schools taking part across the region vary in size of pupil population. The challenge has been designed to make sure size doesn't matter. Instead the engagement levels of each school are averaged out based on the size of the schools. This means that the challenge is fair for all.

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What prizes can my school win?

There are over £5,000 worth of prizes to be won. The school that shows the most overall improvement will win a playground marking package worth up to £3,500 to promote walking during the school day. Markings will be provided by Uniplay who are kindly supporting this challenge with a £1,000 contribution towards the prize value.

In addition, the most improved school will also win an engagement day from Scootfit. Children will take part in a number of scooter based games and activities, children will improve their agility, balance, co-ordination, muscle strength and endurance.

The schools that finish in the top 2 places on the challenge leaderboard will each win an engagement day from Scootfit.

Can I still join if the challenge has already started?

Yes! You can sign up at any point between now and June 30th and your points will start counting straight away. The sooner you join, the more you can contribute, but it's never too late.

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Can I join the challenge if I am already a BetterPoints User?

If you have already joined BetterPoints then firstly thank you. Of course, if you are an existing BetterPoints user with a child at one of the schools you can join the challenge, follow these steps:

Tap the hamburger/ three-line menu button in the top left-hand corner of the app.

Select ‘Add Code’ to enter ‘WYWOW’.

Go to the Challenges icon (lightening bolt icon) and find the West Yorkshire Walk to School 2026 challenge and select join.

Then pick your school and get active this term.

‍How can I help my school win?

You can help by walking to school each day. You can also help by encouraging other parents, carers, and staff to download the app and take part.

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What happens during half term when we don't have to travel to school?

During half term, you can still earn prizes. We will be running a challenge for individual users which will reward people for being active during the half term and walking more. More information will be available during the app closer to the time.

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Which schools are taking part?

There are 30 primary schools across West Yorkshire taking part in the challenge. All are part of the Living Streets' WOW, walk to school challenge — a national initiative that encourages children to walk, wheel, cycle or scoot to school as part of their everyday routine.

This term, those schools are going one step further by joining the BetterPoints leaderboard challenge together.

The schools taking part are:

Adel Primary School, Leeds
All Saints Church of England Primary School, Leeds
All Saints CoE Primary School, Bradford
Beckfoot Allerton Primary School and Nursery, Bradford
Birkby Junior School, Huddersfield
Bramhope Primary School, Leeds
Burley and Woodhead C of E Primary School, Bradford
Carr Green Primary School, Brighouse
Castleford Wheldon Infant School and Nursery, Wakefield
Crossley Fields Junior and Infant School, Kirklees
Elland CofE Junior and Infant School, Calderdale
Hartshead Junior and Infant School, Wakefield
Hugh Gaitskell Primary School, Leeds
Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Primary School, Leeds
Kippax Greenfield Primary School, Leeds
Lady Royd Primary School, Bradford
Morley Newlands Academy, Leeds
Northfield Primary School, Pontefract
Orchard Primary Academy, Dewsbury
Pontefract Carleton Park Junior and Infant School, Wakefield
Pool-in-Wharfedale Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Leeds
Ripponden Junior and Infant School, Calderdale
Saltaire Primary School, Bradford
St Matthew's Catholic Primary School, Bradford
St Michael and All Angels CofE Primary & Pre School, Halifax
St Nicholas Catholic Primary School, Leeds
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Leeds
Swain House Primary School, Bradford
Wakefield Methodist (VC) Junior, Infant and Nursery School, Wakefield
Windmill C of E (VC) Primary School, Kirklees

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Using theBetterPoints App

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What happens when you join the app?

After downloading the BetterPoints App and signing up using the referral code WYWOW. The app will send you a welcome message and instructions on how to join your school team by selecting it from a list.

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Once you have signed up to the app you will be able to see the BetterPoints app homescreen.

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From the homescreen, you can navigate around the app. The diagram above shows some of the key things you be able to see in the app.

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How does the app record my activity?

Simply switch the toggle on in the top right of the app (slide it to the right) and the app will then automatically log your journeys using your phone's motion sensors and GPS. Once your journey is complete, any points you have earned for that journey will be added to your personal account. Trips which count towards the Walk to School Challenge will be added to the school leaderboard.

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Can I take part if I use a wheelchair or mobility scooter?

Absolutely! All kinds of wheelchairs and mobility scooters count as 'wheeling'. The app will track your journey automatically. Because of your device's motion sensors, it may initially record the journey as cycling but you can easily correct this in your timeline after completing your journey, and your activity will be updated.

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What can I do with my own points?

As well as contributing to your school's leaderboard score, your points are yours to keep! You can redeem them for a variety of high-street vouchers, or donate them to charities and community groups — including local good causes. Tap the Rewards (the gift icon) tab in the app to see what's currently available.

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Can my child use the app?

In line with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), children can't use the app but the challenge is designed to be led by the adults in your school community, with the benefits felt by the whole school. We encourage you share what you are doing with the app with your children to get them active, involved and excited by the competition.

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What do I do if I have a problem?

If you encounter a problem with the BetterPoints app, use the Help section within the app's menu (top left ☰) to find FAQs or to contact customer support directly. You can also email customercare@betterpoints.uk for assistance with tracking, points, or account issues.

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I am at school and I need more help, is there any more information or resources available?

If you would like more information about the challenge at your school or more resources like social media images then email: ryan.lewis@betterpoints.uk

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