Sports bodies which offer the best opportunities for Londoners to take up sport will benefit from the next round of the Mayor's sports legacy fund, Boris Johnson announced today.
Sports projects already funded by the Mayor across the capital are reporting increased interest in sport following the incredible success of the 2012 Games, with Londoners looking to get involved in a range of sports, from rowing and running to boxing and women's football.
The Mayor is committed to getting more people of all ages into sport and his Sports Legacy Fund has already invested more than £40 million in grass roots sports across the capital. He has pledged a further £7 million to improve the capital's sports facilities, help its clubs to train more coaches and offer more sports sessions to increase sports participation in London.
Already 76 sports facilities have received funding, doubling user capacity in the city, and more than 15,000 coaches have been trained in a range of sports. On top of this 34 sports projects are also benefiting from extra investment allowing them to expand and the capital's mobile pools programme is helping 12,000 people learn to swim.
Following Team GB's incredible success in rowing during this summer's Olympic and Paralympic Games the Ahoy (sailing and rowing) centre in Greenwich has experienced a 15 per cent increase in enquiries and clubs in the Run! athletics programme say they have experienced at least a 25 per cent increase in membership interest since the Games.
These organisations are already working to capitalise on the upsurge, with Ahoy! planning to train its sailing instructors to become rowing instructors too and establishing an apprenticeship scheme to build new rowing cutters at the centre.The new funding will enable further sporting legacy programmes to benefit from investment across London, and the Mayor's sports team will identify specific organisations where investment will make its biggest mark to help deliver sporting legacy.
Today the Mayor joined double Olympic gold medallist Mo Farah to meet young people engaged in sport at the Black Prince Trust sports hub in south London which he funds from his sports legacy programme.
The Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: "Well ahead of the Games we began laying the groundwork for a fantastic sporting legacy, by preparing our clubs, teams and coaches for an influx of Londoners inspired to try their hand at new activities.
"As a result, the capital’s grassroots sports clubs are in a great position to turn the golden summer we all enjoyed into a lifetime of participation by people of all ages and abilities. I’m determined to help clubs build on the enthusiasm generated by the Games and with the next phase of carefully targeted funding I am even more confident we can not only inspire a new generation of sporting champions, but also make London a fitter and healthier city."
Kate Hoey MP, the Mayor's Sports Commissioner said: "The country made a commitment to deliver a sporting legacy from the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The investment from the Mayor is helping to make that a reality in London. The Sport for Social Change Network, which is funded by the Mayor's Sports Legacy Fund and Nike, is an excellent example of this and provides exactly the sort of grassroots sport activities that can have such a positive effect on the lives of young people."
Brian Dickens, Director of the Sport for Social Change Network which operates from the Black Prince Trust sports hub, said: "This has been an amazing summer and there is no doubt that the Games have been an inspiration to the kids involved with the SSCN. We have seen a real increase in interest across the board - and there's been a particular surge in girls wanting to get involved in boxing. Through the support of the Mayor, Nike and other partners we are now working to capture this enthusiasm and turn it into increased participation."
Notes to editors
The Mayor’s Sports Legacy Fund has three main strands. Awards to date include:Facilities: £5 million awarded to 76 sports facilities across London to date, doubling user capacity. Skills: Over 15,000 coaches trained in a range of sports. Each coach will undertake a minimum of 20 volunteer hours as part of their training commitment. Sporting activities: £4 million has been allocated to 34 sporting projects across London ranging from athletics to zumba.Mobile pools programme is helping 12,000 people learn to swim.Projects are increasing sports participation and addressing wider social issues, such as improving health, education rates, helping people into training and work; and tackling crime.
Freesport: The Mayor is calling on Londoners to try their hand at a sport they may not have tried before for free as part of his Freesport programme, which is aimed at boosting interest and participation in sport before, during and after the Games. Around 130 locations across the capital will be open to the public for the initiative.
Each year Freesport gives around 250 of the capital's sports clubs grants of up to £1500 to allow them to open their doors and offer six hours of free coaching 'taster' sessions to Londoners of all ages. Over 15,000 Londoners receive free sustained coaching in a range of sports - more details can be found at www.molpresents.com/freesport
Clubs who received funding from the Mayor's Sports Legacy Fund reporting increased interest also include:
Putney Town Rowing Club, Richmond upon Thames reported a "deluge" of membership enquiries. On average they receive 700 or so per year but had nearly 450 during the 2012 Games.
Tottenham Community Sports Centre in Haringey where Team GB boxer and 2012 Olympic gold medal winner Nicola Adams trains, saw a 10 per cent upsurge in interest in Boxing. However St Pancras Amateur Boxing Club recorded 25% more enquiries and the Samuel Montagu Youth Centre in Greenwich saw a huge 50 per cent increase in Boxing.
Sport for Social Change Network (SSCN)
The Sport for Social Change Network (SSCN) is a global initiative also in operation in Brazil, South Africa and East Africa. They are networks of multi-stakeholder partnerships that all wish to harness the power of sport to reach the hard to reach groups, to change their lives and the lives of others. The formation of SSCN London has brought together four Partners: the Mayor of London, who has provided funding worth £200,000, Nike, Active Communities Network and Community Action Zone. Funding comes primarily from the Mayor’s Sports Participation Fund and Nike although many other organisations have contributed both cash and in kind support.
The key objectives of SSCN London are:
To increase the amount and range of sporting opportunity in LondonTo ensure that local delivery of activity reflects local needsTo support local organisations and assist them to develop more sustainable ways of working and to increase local capacity To ensure that sporting opportunity is multigenerational.