Sport England Update

Sport England relaunches Sportsmatch

Press release 12 May 2008:
Sport England is delighted to announce the return of Sportsmatch with a new web-based facility enabling applicants to apply online.

Designed to encourage new or additional sponsorship investment from businesses, trusts and private individuals, Sportsmatch, funded by Sport England, will continue to offer pound for pound matched funding to sporting stakeholders for projects that encourage sports participation at grass roots level.
View the full press release.

SEWM press release re CIF awards amounting to over £1.1m

National Lottery awards worth over £1.1m made recently.

Sport England has made 8 awards, from the Community Investment Fund, to projects that will make a real difference to the take up of sport and active recreation in the West Midlands. The projects include the development of new facilities, the provision of people to deliver sports programmes, and in some cases, a combination of both.
Read the press release

Success in awards for national projects – NSF funded

Sport England was proud to support the National Sports Foundation (NSF) funded projects which were all nominated for awards at the 2008 Sport Industry Awards. The projects are delivering a range of activities to increase sports participation. The nominees were:

Swim Active – NSF funding is being used to extend or create new Swim Active programmes in Newham, Bury, Wolverhampton, Mansfield, Derby City, Gloucester, Essex and Norwich in Year 1 and Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell & Walsall, North Tyneside, Trafford, London – Southwark, Somerset in Year 2. These programmes offer a variety of innovative participation programmes and respond to local needs.
NSF Funding: £90,000
Golf Roots – Funding from NSF and R&A Foundation is being used to fund a further 7 Golf Roots programmes in Preston, Newcastle, Birmingham, Corby, Bristol, London – Southwark and Hackney. To support these Golf Roots programmes, volunteer workshops and a volunteer camp are also being funded.
NSF Funding: £40,000
Go Play Rugby - This 8 week recruitment drive involved over 700 clubs and 106 universities throughout the country. The campaign has secured over 9000 new players for the sport. The project was the biggest recruitment drive ever launched by a National Governing Body of sport.
NSF Funding: £500,000

Regionally – Swim Active Wolverhampton was runner up in the inaugural BBC Midlands Power of Sport Award (SEWM sponsored and delivered).

A winning team? The impact of volunteers in sport report. Also access the toolkit material

Get your copy of the impact of sport volunteering report

Nearly a quarter of all volunteers give their time in sport, but little has been done to assess their impact. This pilot study was undertaken in 2007 - 2008 to help sports clubs assess the impact of their volunteers and develop research instruments for the future.

This project took the original generic volunteering impact assessment toolkit and applied it within a sport setting. ……

Their press release said:
Volunteering England and the Institute of Volunteering Research have announced that sport clubs can now measure the impact of their volunteers thanks to a new set of web-based tools.
Laura Ferguson, Head of Sports Volunteering at Volunteering England, said: "These are the first ever tools designed for sports organisations to demonstrate the difference their volunteers are making, and it is fantastic to see those who have already used them promoting the positive impacts of their volunteers and making positive changes to their clubs."

The toolkit
Below are four tools for sport organisations to use that can help assess the impact of your volunteers.

Sport and Schools

Changes to Building Schools for the Future programme

The Department for Children, Schools and Families has launched a consultation following the announcement that the Building Schools for the Future programme is to be amended, with each local authority having the chance to fast track four or five schools within their areas and the remaining schools on course to be rebuilt at some point in the future.

The criteria for the prioritised schools include those with the poorest infrastructure and areas which are planning to build wider community facilities, such as provisions for young people. The next authorities to be included in the programme will be announced early next year on the back of this consultation.

Commenting on the consultation, Schools Minister Jim Knight MP said:

“Today’s consultation asks important questions on how best to manage the remainder of the programme. The early waves of BSF have already focused on local authority areas with the highest level of need. We now want to target children and schools with the greatest needs, wherever they live, to benefit as soon as possible. Instead of waiting, we want to give them more scope to target pockets of deprivation and underperforming schools now – by giving the remaining local authorities the chance of early entry as soon as they are ready.”

Opportunities for Sport

This announcement means that local authorities will have to identify those schools which they think are most in need of regeneration. The consultation specifically announces that those areas which are planning wider community regeneration, such as provisions for young people, may be considered ahead of other areas. This creates an opportunity for the sporting sector to work with local authorities to ensure that there is increased access to sporting areas and places for young people to play as part of the rebuilding programme.

For further information please see here

Partnerships for schools – Building schools for the future (BSF)

PfS announces review of operational Local Education Partnerships - 21 May 2008

A review of how the bespoke public private partnership model – the Local Education Partnership - established to deliver the Building Schools for the Future programme is working has been announced by Partnerships for Schools. Read the full release.

Sport and Skills

Changes to the skills landscape

SkillsActive have produced a detailed breakdown of the changes to the ‘skills landscape’ - click here to view.

New consultation on high level skills

The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills has launched a consultation to build stronger links between businesses and universities. The consultation was launched by the Minister of State for Higher Education, Bill Rammell MP, and seeks views from employers, students, colleges and universities on how to raise the levels in skills of those in work, as well as ensuring that graduates are given the best access to skills which will be of benefit in their future working careers. The consultation aims to identify how businesses, trade unions, employers and employees can work together to encourage a demand for high level skills.

The consultation Higher Education at Work: High Skills: High Value will run from 14 April 2008 to 7 July 2008.

Commenting on the consultation, the Minister said:

"Thirty one per cent of the population are currently qualified to degree level or above. To meet the economic challenge posed by rapidly-developing countries such as China and India, and to retain Britain's position as a key knowledge economy, we have to get more people in the workforce qualified to a higher level, at least 40 per cent by 2020. Our higher education system is already world class but we can do even more to equip graduates and those already in work with the higher level skills demanded by employers. Every university, college and employer should be thinking hard about how it can respond to this important challenge.

For further information please see here.

SkillsActive will be responding to this consultation on behalf of the sporting sector.

SkillsActive receives funding boost

SkillsActive has announced that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is to provide them with £350,000 per annum over the next three years. The funding will be used to help implement the strategy outlined in the Children’s Plan, with a focus on SkillsActive as the Sector Skills council for Playwork.

Commenting on the announcement, the CEO of SkillsActive Stephen Studd said

“This comes at an exciting time for Playwork and the launch of the Children’s Plan. This gives us the opportunity to ensure the unique contribution of play and Playwork can be at the heart of the implementation of the plan.”

For further information please see here.

Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) – consultation – extended

News 20 May 2008:
The consultation period on the second phase revision of the West Midlands regional spatial strategy (RSS) has been extended by six months.
Read the full article.

House of Commons & House of Lords – sport questions etc, 25 April – 1 May

Fri, 25 April 2008 | House of Commons - Written Answer
Contents

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to increase the number of young people engaging in sporting activities. [201374]…………………………………………………………

Spellar - Motorsport Development UK (finance)

Fri, 25 April 2008 | House of Commons - Written Answer
Contents

Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 31 March 2008, Official Report, column 540W, on Motorsport Development UK, what estimate was made in 2003 of the amount that would be provided to Motorsport Development UK; and if he will make a statement. [200797] ………………………………….

Foster, Don - School sports

Thu, 1 May 2008 | House of Commons - Written Answer
Contents

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much (a) National Lottery funding and (b) Government funding school sport received in each year since 2003-04 for which figures are available, expressed in 2007-08 prices. [203022] ………………………

MPs debate Sports and Leisure Trusts (VAT)

Wed, 30 April 2008 | Debate - Adjournment and General

Summary

The VAT arrangements placed on sport and leisure trusts were determined by EU regulations, MPs heard today.
During a debate today the Financial Secretary to the Treasury Jane Kennedy told MPs that HMRC would not be able to change VAT arrangements for sport and leisure trusts due to EU regulations on VAT. ……………………….

Hunt - Sports Funding

Wed, 30 April 2008 | House of Commons - Written Answer
Contents

Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department is taking to achieve the target of increasing private sector funding of sport in 2008-09. [202346] ……………………………………………..
Non-governmental and International Organisation Press Releases

BISL welcomes 'gamercize' revolution

Wed, 30 April 2008 | Campaign Organisation Press Release

Summary

The chief executive officer of Business in Sport and Leisure (BISL,) Brigid Simmonds has commented on the new phenomena of 'gamercize', which she claimed was the British grown answer to the obesity challenges of the UK today. She explained that gamercize has produced cycle and step machines that plug directly into a PC, Wii, Playstation, or any games console, to combine computer games with physical exercise. ……………………………….

ODA - survey results reveal positive attitude towards Paralympic Games

Thu, 1 May 2008 | Government Body Press Release

Summary

The Olympic Delivery Authority has reported that according to a recent survey, 93 per cent of the UK public see Paralympic athletes as good role models for young people. 69 per cent of those polled stated that there should be more media coverage of Paralympic sport. ………………………

View to full details

House of Commons & House of Lords – sport questions etc

Hunt - Taking Part Survey