Sport England Small Grants programme

by Susie Nation-Grainger on 25 Feb 2011 Are you a sailing club or centre who could do with some extra funding? The RYA are encouraging clubs and centres to take part in the Sport England Small Grants programme which has been set up to support local community projects to increase participation and develop opportunities in their chosen sport.

Since April 2009, some £620,900 has been distributed to seventy five sailing and windsurfing clubs through the Sport England Small Grants Programme. What’s more, there is £7 Million of National Lottery funding available each year, and they want more applications from our sport.

Graham Manchester, Programme Lead for Adult Participation explains: 'We believe the Sport England Small Grant scheme is an unmissable opportunity for RYA clubs and centres to gain some valuable extra funding.

'Sport England prioritises projects which will support regular sailing activity amongst adults so this ties in perfectly with our work on club development to increase the number of adults out on the water and sailing more often. There have already been a number of sailing projects who have been successful with funding so we are urging clubs and centres to submit their applications and to take advantage of this scheme.'

One of the many clubs who have already been successful with their application is Hollowell Sailing Club, receiving a £10,000 grant last year for their ‘Hollowell sailing connections for youth and adults’ programme’. The aim of the project was to increase the youth and learn-to-sail sessions with four new boats, which would enable the club to offer more sessions with a better range of boats to hire.

Commodore Mike Pipes explains: 'We projected the boats would enable us to deliver 100 additional training places, from 700 to 800, in 2010 with 130 people over the age of eight benefitting from the new boats in the first year. We also had to provide measures to monitor the project’s success, such as an increase in people participating in club racing, becoming members, hiring boats and undertaking training courses.

'When we discovered Sport England were awarding us £10,000 to buy the boats it was brilliant and they have had an immediate impact as, as projected, 130 people have developed their skills since we got the boats, and these people have access to a range of double and single-handers to hire once their training is complete. We also delivered 800 training places this year. There’s a real buzz around the club and a huge increase in activity as a result.'

RYA Regional Development Officer for the Midlands, Gareth Brookes said: 'The Sport England Small Grants programme is a great source of funding for clubs and centres as the form is relatively easy to complete and we have had a fantastic success rate with applications. It is fantastic to see plans and projects being completed, especially those that are aimed at getting more adults sailing more often.'

Open to any non-profit organisation or club, applying for a grant is very easy. Simply visit the Sport England website and complete the online application process which will ask you a range of questions including what you are looking for funding for, how much you need and how many people will benefit from the project.

You can apply for any sum from £300 to £10,000 but the total project cost cannot exceed £50,000.

Sport England is focused on the delivery of a mass participation legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It invests National Lottery and Exchequer funding in organisations and projects that will grow and sustain participation in grassroots sport and create opportunities for people to excel at their chosen sport.

http://www.sportengland.org/funding/small_grants.aspx