County Sports Partnership Update

Further CIF Investment into CSP Region

Two more projects based in the SASSOT region are to benefit from awards from Sport England’s Community Investment Fund.

The two projects have combined costs of over £500,000 and have received CIF monies to the tune of almost £80,000, and will target increasing participation in women and girls rugby and rowing and canoeing.

Staffordshire Rugby Development Partnership – awarded £31,460 towards the costs of a project to develop women's rugby in Staffordshire. The award will support a two year senior women's rugby programme to be developed through funding a part time women’s rugby coach. The coach will work with key rugby clubs to help them set up women’s rugby sections, as well as support existing sections to recruit more female players. The estimated contribution to an increase in people to taking part in sport in the region from this project is 250 women and girls from the Staffordshire area.

Trentham Water Sports Association – awarded £48,000 towards a project costing £441,998 to build a new club house with changing rooms and storage for canoeing and rowing at Trentham lakes in Stoke.
The new facility will replace an existing building which is run down and due to be demolished as part of a redevelopment of the surrounding area. The club aims to expand the take up of both canoeing and rowing from all members of the local community including women/girls, older people and disabled people. The estimated contribution to an increase in people to taking part in sport in the region from this project is 328 more people from the Stoke on Trent area taking up rowing and canoeing.

CIF has now committed over £1m of investment to projects in Staffordshire which aim to contribute to achieving an increase in the take up sport and active recreation.

More details on CIF can be obtained from Jason Britton, Business Development Manager at SASSOT, via jbritton@staffordbc.gov.uk or on 01785 619599

Regional Governing Bodies hit the jackpot with lottery funding

Just over £4million of lottery funding has been allocated to Governing Bodies in the West Midlands, via Sport England’s Club and Coach Programme. The nationwide programme aims to target the introductory and developmental levels of the Player Pathway (FUNdamentals, Learn to Train and Train to Train), although up to 25% of the funding can be used for Talent Development (Train to Compete).

The funding will run for three years, with the bulk of the money used to employ coaches working at a regional or sub-regional level. The majority of NGBs are hoping to get their coaches in post within the next six months. Additionally, most of these posts will have a strong mentoring focus, in order to increase the number of qualified, appropriately skilled voluntary coaches in local clubs.

As an example of how NGBs are planning to use this funding, the Royal Yachting Association has identified that although most clubs are strong at teaching the basics of sailing and / or windsurfing, they may not be in a position to deliver race training, especially for inexperienced sailors. Therefore the NGB intends to employ a Regional Racing Coach who will deliver race training within identified clubs, and also mentor coaches within these clubs to improve their race training knowledge.

Sport England West Midlands has allocated funding to 25 Governing Bodies, who now have to meet various award conditions to allow the release of money. This includes developing a delivery plan, detailing how the programme will be rolled out in each CSP area and identifying the clubs that will benefit. These plans will need to be signed off by each CSP before funding is released. Therefore several ‘speed dating’ sessions have taken place or will take place shortly to allow NGB officers to present their plans to the relevant CSP officers, and to allow CSPs to have input into how the programme will be rolled out locally.

Once these meetings have been completed, SASSOT will circulate a summary sheet to Local Authorities and School Sport Partnerships, detailing how each sport’s funding will impact on the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent area and listing identified clubs where applicable.

In the meantime, for further information please contact: Jane Kracke, Sports Manager, 01785 619187 or jkracke@staffordbc.gov.uk

NGBs Sign Up to Partnership Agreements

Four National Governing Bodies have signed up to Partnership Agreements with Sport Across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, and another five agreements are under development. SASSOT aims to have agreements signed with at least twenty governing bodies by the autumn.

SASSOT has developed a ‘Menu of Services’, detailing all forms of support that can be offered to NGBs and their clubs, coaches and volunteers by the core team. Mapped against each item is the commitment / information required from the NGB in return. NGBs can then select all the services that they feel are relevant to their organisation, given their size and resources, and these form the basis of the Partnership Agreement. The Agreement will also provide a framework for annual review meetings where SASSOT can measure the impact of the support offered.

So far Agreements have been signed with Football, Rugby, Tennis and Triathlon, with Badminton, Cricket, Golf, Squash and Swimming under development. Meetings have been arranged with Hockey and Gymnastics.

For more information please contact Jane Kracke, Sports Manager, 01785 619187 or jkracke@staffordbc.gov.uk

Contracts extended for Sport-Specific Officers

SASSOT are pleased to announce that, following the end of Active Sports, we have been able to extend the contracts of our current Sport-Specific Officers. The original Active Sports programme provided SASSOT with funding to employ Sport-Specific Officers in a variety of sports for a five-year period. The last of this funding runs out shortly, but by working in partnership with the relevant National Governing Bodies we have been able to secure additional funding to extend all our current sport specific posts until at least December 2007, with some contracts running through to summer 2008.

The remit of these Officers will remain similar to their role under Active Sports, with an emphasis on strategic support of the sport’s infrastructure (clubs, coaches, volunteers etc.). This will hopefully ensure long-term sustainability of the good practice currently happening within each sport.

At present, SASSOT employs ex-Active Sports Development Officers in Athletics, Girls Football, Hockey and Swimming, and we also employ a Netball Development Officer on behalf of England Netball. Through Active Sports we previously employed officers in Cricket and Rugby. The Cricket Development Officer is now working directly for Staffordshire Cricket Board in a development role, but unfortunately funding for the Active Sports Rugby post ended in March. However, the county’s Rugby Development Partnership have secured funding from various partners to deliver a girls’ rugby programme, and they were also recently awarded Sport England Community Investment Funding to support the development of women’s rugby. This will ensure that the good work begun under Active Sports is expanded to include women of all ages.

SASSOT will continue to work with NGBs on an ongoing basis to try to secure further contract extensions, as we recognise the value of these posts to the county’s sporting organisations. “Sport-Specific Officers are a valuable resource and one that we are keen to retain within our County Sports Partnership. Having a county-level officer means that we can offer a much greater level of support to clubs, volunteers and coaches within that sport, and they also have the capacity to work with partner organisations on an ongoing basis”, said Jane Kracke, Sports Manager for SASSOT.

For further information please contact: Jane Kracke, Sports Manager, 01785 619187 or jkracke@staffordbc.gov.uk

Regional Sports Board visit Staffordshire

Trentham Gardens, one of Staffordshire's premier tourist destinations, are set to welcome the Regional Sports Board for their next meeting on 11 September 2007.

To energize them for their afternoon's meeting the Board have been invited to take part in rowing activity on Trentham Lake, ably led by Darren Barton, ARA Community Coach.

The meeting is to be held within the Italian Gardens, where as well as their usual business agenda they will will hear from Director, Mark Thornewill, about what's been going on in the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent CSP.

Early evening will see the arrival of Executive Board Chairs and Vice-Chairs from across the region as they join Board members for a workshop.

The RSB's visit will culminate in Rauf Mirza, Chair of the West Midlands Regional Sports Board, presenting Equity and Diversity and Special Recognition Awards to recognise outstanding achievements by CSPs within the West Midlands for the period April 06 to March 07.

For more information contact:
Mark Thornewill
Tel: 01785 619896
Email: mthornewill@staffordbc.gov.uk

Equity Project Funding

There is still time to apply to the ‘Access Across Staffordshire’ funding scheme.

The first round of applications closes on the 8^th October and the CSP has made £5,000 available for individual awards of up to £500 to support projects which enable widened access to sport for the county's under-represented groups including:

Women and Girls
Disabled People
Black Minority Ethnic Communities
Low Socio-Economic Groups

The fund is open to Local Authorities and National Governing Bodies of Sport who require financial assistance to support or develop a new project which has an equality theme and fits into one of the target categories.

Click here to read the Equality Standard For Sport Newsletter - August 2007 (29th Edition)

CSP Job Secondment

The CSP is looking to appoint an Equity Implementation Officer to cover maternity leave. The role will be for one day per week, running from 19/9/07 to 16/5/08. Further details and links for an application form are available on the SASSOT website or by following this link.

West Midlands Brokerage Service pilot

The workforce consultation, undertaken earlier this year, clearly identifies a need for improved access to education and training opportunities for both the paid and voluntary sport workforce in Staffordshire.

As a direct off shoot of this research and the creation of the Partnership Workforce Development Plan, SASSOT is in the process of piloting an Organisation Needs Analysis (ONA) tool linked to Learning & Skills Council (LSC) Train to Gain funding.

The pilot, that will involve working with the West Midlands Brokerage Service, will hopefully help Partner organisations, such as local authorities, identify specific training needs for their sports and leisure staff. Working through the Brokerage Service will also help to build links with local training providers and access subsidised training.

The pilot will initially be tested with Stafford Borough Council's Leisure Service and the SASSOT core team; subject to this being successful, we hope to roll this service out to other Local Authorities and NGBs.

For more information please contact:
Ben Hollands, Workforce Development Officer
Tel: 01785 619317
Email: bhollands@staffordbc.gov.uk

CSP Thanks Trentham Estate

The CSP recently presented a framed t-shirt and photo’ montage from this year’s Special Schools Sports Festival to John Lowther, Operations Director of the Trentham Estate.

CSP Thanks Trentham Estate

Jason Britton (right) presents Trentham Estate's John Lowther, with the sponsorship memento.

The memento was presented in grateful recognition of Trentham Estate’s sponsorship of the festival, which saw over 200 pupils from County’s Special Schools take part in a wide-range of sporting activities.

“We’re really grateful to the Trentham Estate for their kind sponsorship. The festival was a fantastic day and we hope that the participants continue to enjoy their sport and get involved with their local clubs” commented Jason Britton, SASSOT’s Business Development Manager seen presenting the T-shirt to Trentham Estate’s John Lowther.

For more information on the day click here.

Sporting Champions - fantastic opportunity for a World-Class Athlete visit

Since April 2007, Adam Whitehead, James Hillier and Sara McGreavy, are just a few of the Sporting Champions who have visited Staffordshire. By joining in, engaging and enthusing young people at community-based events, these World-Class sporting heroes have promoted the benefits of sport and physical activity.

Funding secured by Sporting Champions, for the period April 07 to March 08, will allow us to apply for a national pot of around 200 visits. Requests for these visits are to be made via the County Sports Partnership and must demonstrate support to Sport England’s vision and Sport Across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent’s Delivery Plan through one or all of the following key themes:

Increasing participation in sport and physical activity in the community (preferably via a Community Sports Network programme or project for young people)
Equality and Diversity
Leadership and Volunteering

How to apply

Complete the attached form (click here to download) and return to Leigh Morton lmorton@staffordbc.gov.uk . Your request will then be submitted to Sporting Champions who will then liaise with you direct regarding the outcome and visit arrangements.

So, have a think about your forthcoming events, and let’s try to get as many Champions to visit community-based activities from the 200 in the national pot up for grabs! Please do not nominate schools or School Sports Partnerships, as these visits will be coordinated through the YST and SSP networks.

For more information on the above please contact Leigh Morton on (01785) 619349 or lmorton@staffordbc.gov.uk

Opportunity to join the SASSOT Coaches Database

In conjunction with NGB’s, Local Authorities and Education partners, Sport Across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent are working towards the introduction of the Staffordshire Coach Database. This will be open to all coaches, living or working in the Staffordshire area, who have met a set of minimum operating criteria. We anticipate that this database will help to raise the profile and standards of coaching in this area.

Details of registered coaches will be held on an on-line database, which will be searchable by registered schools and Local Authority Sports Development Officers, to help them fill coaching vacancies within their organisations. The list will not be a central employment system and coach details will be issued on the understanding that employers will still be responsible for following good employment practice when recruiting coaches from the list.

As well as the benefit of enhanced employment opportunities, registered Coaches will receive advice and improved access to training. They will also qualify for a discount at events such as the Staffordshire Coaching Conference.

The database will "go live" in December 2007, however we would like to invite coaches to apply as soon as possible.

For more information please contact:

Ben Hollands
Tel: 01785 619317
Email: bhollands@staffordbc.gov.uk

Upcoming Workshops

We are pleased to announce our new Coach and Club Education Programme for the period September 2007 to March 2008.

As well as regular workshops such as Safeguarding & Protecting Children, Equity in your Coaching, A Club for All and First Aid, we are introducing new workshops such Coach Development in Disadvantaged Communities.

Our workshops are organised in partnership with sports coach UK, runningsports and a number of First Aid organisers. We aim to offer a wide variety of workshops to help clubs, coaches and volunteers develop and keep up to date with topics such as child protection, disability, equity, mentoring, communication, funding and fitness.

For more information on the full list of workshops available please click here

For more information on the above please contact:

Elaine Loader
Tel: 01785 619695
Email: eloader@staffordbc.gov.uk

Naomi’s Baby Arrives!

Congratulations to Naomi Bird and her husband Ryan on the birth of their baby son. Naomi, who is SASSOT’s Research and Marketing Officer, gave birth to Bronson Isaac on August 16^th 2007, with baby weighing in at 8lb 14oz.

Best wishes to all !

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