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Tackling social problems through power of sport

Disadvantaged communities across England are set to get active thanks to £8.2million of National Lottery funding.

More than 124,000 people will benefit from the scheme, which will use sport to help tackle social problems affecting young people, women and ethnic minorities.

Smashing stereotypes

 

One of the projects to enjoy a £150,000 funding slice is the Jason Roberts Foundation, which is changing traditional perceptions of sports such as golf, rugby and tennis being elitist.

The foundation has received more than £150,000 to offer several new and diverse activities. The foundation will be one of the first in the in the UK to offer snag golf, a version of the sport using Velcro and played on Astroturf. 

Under-25s will be offered the chance to first get to grips with basics of the game, before being teamed up with two local golf clubs to receive PGA qualified golf coaching.

The foundation will be one of the first in the in the UK to offer ‘snag golf’, a version of the sport using Velcro and played on Astroturf

Former Premier League footballer and founder Jason Roberts said: "Sport can equip young people with discipline, pride and confidence, all skills which they can carry from the pitch right through to adult life. Thanks to this National Lottery funding we can introduce more youngsters to sports, which up to now they might have thought weren’t for people like them."

Sport for social good

Encouraging sport for social for good, the fund has relaxed its rules to enable less well-off communities to apply for funding*. Since 2013, over 200 projects have already received funding, helping to get over 350,000 people active to date.

Sport England’s Director of Community Sport, Mike Diaper, said yesterday: "The 46 projects receiving National Lottery funding today all have compelling plans to use sport as a way of improving the lives of thousands of people. We know that people who live challenging lives face the biggest barriers to getting active – this fund is about breaking the barriers down."

Minister for Sport, Tracey Crouch said: "As sports minister, I want as many people as possible to get active but I also know the powerful social impact sport can have. Whether that’s helping to cut crime, making people healthier, or strengthening bonds between people. The projects receiving National Lottery funding today do all of this and more, and I know they’ll be a huge success."

Turn up and play

Other projects receiving a share of the National Lottery funding include Getting the Inactive Active!

The project, run by FitCap, will focus on getting under 30s who live challenging lives in East Birmingham and North Solihull active.

Using £152,375 of funding, it will offer 'Turn Up and Play' activity sessions to give residents the chance to try a host of different sports without having to join a team or sign up for a term of classes.

Meanwhile, a new Be Active project will help people with mental health problems in Swindon become more active thanks to an award of £146,911.

Swindon and District Mind will offer people in disadvantaged communities exercise class taster sessions and one-to-one support.

The project will also train up local leisure centre staff, volunteers and club coaches on how they can best encourage people with mental health problems to get involved in community-based sport.

*Ordinarily, Sport England requires organisations to co-fund a proportion of their project.  However, where projects relate to areas of social disadvantage (as outlined in the English Indices of Deprivation), and the substantial majority (80% or more) of the targeted participants live in the local authority ward, this condition can be waived. 

 

Channel website: http://www.sportengland.org/

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