Active Farmers has run fitness classes in regional areas across Australia in order to keep fit and improve mental health, with one such program making a difference in Warracknabeal.

Justin Knorpp, who runs classes in Warracknabeal, said they had been a great success, and noted there was plenty of room in the region for other Active Farmer programs.

"In my classes here in Warracknabeal, there's been a fellow that's come for the last few weeks and he's on the other side of Rupanyup.

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"I've had someone else ask me about Beulah, and whether I'd go up that way."

"There's certainly scope for other people to do it in different areas if they want it to."

The Empowered Scholarship, in partnership with Hutcheon & Pearce, gives the chance for six successful, community-minded applicants to give back to their communities by running the classes.

The six successful applicants will complete their Certificate III and Certificate IV in personal training and go on to work with Active Farmers for a minimum of two years.

Applications close 31 October.

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Active Farmer's chief executive, Ginny Stevens said the scholarship would allow the company to reach communities it hadn't been able to in the past.

"We've had so much interest from communities, but we haven't always been able to find trainers to start classes in those communities," she said.

Ms Stevens said Active Farmers were looking to expand to more communities in Victoria especially.

"We've only got three programs in Victoria at the moment, one in Warracknabeal, one in Wando Vale and one in Bridgewater near Bendigo,"

Upskilling an existing member of the community was an essential part of the idea behind the scholarship, according to Ms Stevens.

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"We find that you're better off working with people who are already ingrained in the community," she said.

"Rather than trying to find a trainer that lives in a bigger city and has to travel out, over the years it's been more sustainable if we can find someone who isn't going anywhere."

Ms Stevens started Active Farmer in 2015 in Mangoplah in New South Wales, but it has since spread across the country and now runs programs in 45 regional communities.

Becoming a non-profit was a gamechanger for the company, Ms Stevens said, as it meant classes no longer had a minimum size, meaning classes could be as big or small as they needed to be.

"Just because someone lives in an area that's a bit more isolated doesn't mean they don't deserve to get access to a group fitness class," she said.

"The services go where the people are and that's not working in our favor in small farming communities.

"For us, it's not about making money; it's about providing a really good service, keep people fit, connected and save lives in regional areas where there's a higher risk of suicide - that's the aim here."

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