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Young people are a key target group of the 2012 Games. The inspiration the Games will be used to encourage a more active population and Sport England has a target of getting 196,000 more people (in the region) active by 2012. To achieve this there needs to be more and better quality sports facilities, parks, pathways, trails and play areas; more coaches, activity leaders, clubs and volunteers and more activity programmes in communities, schools, colleges and universities. There also needs to be a sea change in attitudes to sport and active recreation (by connecting with the Olympic brand) to get more young people staying in sport after they leave school, as well as more older people returning to active sport or taking it up for the first time.
What's Happening Nationally?
What's Happening in the West Midlands?
Potential Opportunities for Worcestershire
Current Focus
Worcestershire's Facilities
Website
What’s Happening Nationally?
Elite Sport
- UK School Games
- Investment of £600m in high performance sport
- Programme to improve quality and quantity of coaching through UK Coaching Framework
- Scholarships and Apprenticeships
Schools and Young People
- Programme to increase the number of Competition Managers to boost the quality and quantity of local competitions
- Recruiting Young Ambassadors from School Partnerships to work with other young people to inspire them
- Creating a London 2012 Education Programme in schools and colleges – subjects covered include enterprise, geography, citizenship, foreign languages and science.
- Encourage 20,000 young people to be entrepreneurial: www.starttalkingideas.org
- Activity in Schools Toolkit and School Pedometer Programme
- Educational resources for teachers, parents and students: www.london2012.com/onyourmarks
Community
- Well@Work Programme
- Creation of a new 2012 Legacy Trust Fund
What’s Happening in the West Midlands?
- A revised Regional Plan for Sport from 2008 to 2012 will be published with links to Natural England’s wide-ranging outdoor recreation strategy.
- Development of a sports volunteering strategy for 2012. Target: 3,000 of our young people inspired and skilled as volunteers at pre-Games events and the Games themselves
- Sports facilities improvement services for local authorities to be launched by September 2007
- A regional sports facilities support framework will be established by December 2007 to maximise the thriving regional sports events programme
Potential Opportunities for Worcestershire
- Linking into the opportunities created by the National and Regional Focus
- 2012 programme in schools
- Link to after school programme
- Creatively link the Olympics brand to education and the curriculum
- Look into new national initiatives such as Sports Search – a national scheme for secondary school children to match suitable sports using a web based programme
- The Healthy Stadia programme -audit of facilities: Are they in the right place? Do they meet national standards? Do they meet the demands of the community?
- Upgrade of sports/leisure facilities
- Development of a sports facility infrastructure
- Support clubs to increase club membership
- Development of a local (whole community) events calendar
- Attract major sports events in Worcestershire
- Hold a ‘mini-Olympics’ or ‘Paralympics’
- Tie into the ‘street games’ initiatives (promotion of ‘street games’ will greatly increase in the run up to the games)
- Have trial days on different Olympic sports at local clubs and leisure centres
- Identify projects to fit within the 2012 Legacy Trust fund
- Programme to improve the number and standard of sports coaches
- Programme to develop a (sports) volunteer workforce
- Programme to support promising athletes, for example:
- Through a funding, promotion and ambassador programme; ‘Stars of the future’ – talent ID for sports literate youngsters with training package; FANS – Free Access for National Sports People (Sports Grant Aid) for talented and elite.
- Sponsorship or grant schemes (e.g. local businesses to local promising athletes)
- Mentoring scheme for promising athletes
- Development of a healthy lifestyle programme which will build upon the interest generated by the games
- Engagement of local influencers
- Use local ‘sporting champions’ to talk to children and young people
Current Focus for Worcestershire (Plans being discussed)
- Worcester University’s Sports Science Department is looking into the feasibility of developing a community based coaching project, using students to stimulate community involvement in sport
- Herefordshire have focussed on a Paralympics specialism, based upon developing facilities at the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford. Worcestershire and Herefordshire form a single sub region in sports terms (with a single Sports Partnership). If successful, Worcestershire could secure investment in complementary Paralympics facilities as part of a two county offer, for example:
- Other possible venues facilities include
- Equestrianism at Three Counties Showground
- Rowing at Worcester Rowing Club
- Field based activities at Worcester Rugby Club
Worcestershire's Facilities
- Motion Analysis Research and Rehabilitation Centre – University of Worcester
- University Sports Science Department
- Worcester Rugby Club
- Worcestershire Cricket Club
- Three Counties Showground
Contact the Coordinator
Tourism – Business – Sport – Culture – Volunteers – Worcestershire 2012 Olympic Coordinator
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