News

Sport England awards £160,003 of CIF monies towards a new floodlit synthetic turf pitch and changing facilities in Burton 

18 December 2007

Blessed Robert Sutton Catholic Sports College in Burton was awarded £160,003 towards the cost of a floodlit synthetic turf pitch (STP) and changing facilities. The full sized pitch, primarily to be used for football and hockey, will be located on the school site in the Stapenhill area of Burton upon Trent. It will meet the needs of young people and the wider community, increasing the take up of sport and widening access to high quality facilities. It is expected that the artificial pitch will increase participation in sport in the area by 1,350 per annum by year five of its use.

Andy Mawdsley, Partnership Development Manager, East Staffordshire Schools Sport Partnership, said:

"This will be a fabulous new facility; it will enable greater access for all young people from the local community, increasing the numbers taking part in hockey, football and other sports. The school will also be a major beneficiary, helping us to develop skilled players and to foster a lifelong interest in sport."

East Staffordshire United Launched

9 March 2007

East Staffordshire held a very successful first meeting on March 9 2007. There was excellent attendance and commitment towards forming a Community Sports Network from a broad range of organisations. There was directorate level representation from East Staffordshire Borough Council Cultural services, Children and Young People, Parks and Countryside, Arts and Waste Management. Other organisations represented were Staffordshire Police, Extended schools, Children and Lifelong Learning Partnership, South Staffordshire Primary Care Trust, Staffordshire Youth Service, Staffordshire County Council, Heart of Burton, East Staffordshire School Sports Partnership, County Sports Partnership, Staffordshire Early years and Childcare Unit.  Apologies were given from Burton Albion Education Centre, Voluntary Centre and clubs and community groups.

The meeting began with a team building exercise and then followed on with an informative presentation by Vicki Brearley (Head of Sport Physical Health and Community) on the work that had and was continuing to take place within East Staffordshire to raise physical activity and sporting participation levels.  Will Evans then presented East Staffordshire current statistics from the Active Peoples Survey. He highlighted that 22.8% of over 16 year olds are participating in 30minutes of moderate activity three times a week however 48.2% were doing no activity.  This session highlighted the task in hand for East Staffordshire United and focused the group to think about how they can work in partnership to increase participation levels. A presentation was also provided on The New Delivery System for Sport, the purpose and make up of a Community Sports Network. Group discussions then took place on opportunities and threats of working in this way to address community safety, regeneration, education and health. The outcomes from this discussion will form the basis of the work programme for East Staffordshire United. 

For more information on East Staffordshire United please contact: -

Vicki Brearley

Head of Sport, Physical Health and Community Development

East Staffordshire Borough Council

Email: vicki.brearley@eaststaffsbc.gov.uk