Select Committee on Culture, Media and Sport Written Evidence


Memorandum submitted by SpoRTA

1.  INTRODUCTION TO SPORTA

  1.1  SpoRTA—the Sports and Recreation Trusts Association—is the organisation that represents cultural and leisure trusts, set up to run local authority leisure services independently in the United Kingdom.

  1.2  Members are social enterprises, large and small, which play an important role in the regeneration and the building of sustainable communities at a local level.

  1.3  SpoRTA was founded in 1997 and currently has a membership of over 115 leisure trusts from all parts of the UK with 550 individual leisure facilities. Together the trusts have a combined annual turnover in excess of £517 million, have over 195 million customer visits each year and employ over 25,000 full time employees.

2.  SPORTA'S SUBMISSION

  2.1  In submitting written evidence to the Committee, SpoRTA has focused in particular on the impact of the Games upon grassroots participation in sport, both before and after the Games and the legacy use of venues across the UK.

  2.2  This evidence is drawn from a number of SpoRTA members throughout the country but excludes input or reference to Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL). Please be advised that GLL is submitting evidence separately to the Committee given its location and role in the 2012 Games.

3.  EVIDENCE

  3.1  Most SpoRTA members who contributed to this evidence are based outside of London and do not have Olympic events taking place in their area or are unaware of such events. However, members across the UK are keen to benefit from the opportunities the Olympics offers and many trusts have registered their venues as potential training camps.

  3.2  Many members see indirect benefits from the 2012 legacy, and believe that the high profile of the 2012 Games could help encourage increased participation and use of sports facilities, and promote greater awareness of health benefits. However, some trusts are concerned that without targeted capital funding for local facilities their local communities would see little long-term benefit from the Olympic legacy.

  3.3  Whilst many trusts may see the Olympics as a "driver", encouraging local authorities to improve facilities and the public to use these facilities, some see the 2012 Games as a competitor for funding and therefore potentially unhelpful.

  3.4  Although most SpoRTA members could not point to increased sports participation at their facilities since the London 2012 Olympics were announced in 2005, they generally believe that participation in sport will increase as a result of the Games. However, some felt that increases in participation leading up to the Games would be limited and short-term. As one member put it "the challenge is to sustain this increased participation in the long term".

  3.5  A particularly successful scheme for improving participation generally is the Tees Active Sports Academy aimed at supporting, celebrating and encouraging talented local athletes across a range of sports to stay local and achieve their potential locally. With strong links to local universities and organisations and with the support of Academy Champion Dame Tanni Grey Thompson, there are currently around half a dozen members who have a real chance of competing in 2012 and a couple who may make 2008.

  3.6  Some trusts have developed initiatives to raise awareness of sports in the local community in the context of the Olympics, for example free sports days at leisure centres to be repeated every year up until 2012. However most trusts have not yet undertaken any such initiatives. Some maintained it was too early and it was best to wait until they could use the Olympic logo after Beijing 2008 whilst others felt this was an area for local authorities and some felt they did not have the resources.

  As one SpoRTA member commented: "We feel hampered by the lack of a marketable brand—and lack of resource in deprived area—we don't have the resources to invest in a deprived area with many other challenges".

  3.7  SpoRTA believes that focussing on the health benefits of sport alongside raising the profile of the Olympics is an important role for the London 2012 Games and will help increase sporting participation in the UK.

  3.8  Media reporting of the Olympics at a local, regional and national level will play an important role in changing behaviour in terms of sport participation and inspiring young sportsmen and women of the future.

4.  RECOMMENDATIONS

  4.1  Clear guidance should be made available for all public sector sports providers on how they can best use the run-up and legacy of the London 2012 Games to increase participation and use of sporting venues. This should include advice on marketing and use of the Olympics logo, which will be important for running community events.

  4.2  Whilst some members are optimistic about the benefits of the Games and the Olympics legacy, some are concerned that the Games will not benefit their local areas. The Government and LOCOG should address this by putting in place specific prgarammes to help support grassroots organisations and provide guidance on how they and their communities might better benefit from the Olympics.

  4.3  Whilst some local sports partnerships are strong, these relationships vary from area to area. Again, there needs to be clear guidance for public sector sports providers on who they should forge partnerships with locally, regionally and nationally in the run-up to the London 2012 Games.

November 2007





 
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