Sport Unlimited a big hit with young people in the Tees Valley
The Sport Unlimited programme has proved a great success in the North East with 36,000 young people who don't normally play sport outside of school lessons taking up the challenge of becoming more active. Sport Unlimited is a programme allowing anyone aged 10-19 the chance to try out new and exciting sports under the expert guidance of qualified coaches.
The Tees Valley programme has been delivered by local authority sports development teams in Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Stockton and Redcar & Cleveland. They have worked closely with community sports clubs, national governing bodies, youth services, schools and colleges in order to encourage a wide population of youngsters to access activities.
Over 7000 young people in the Tees Valley have taken up the opportunity to try new sports and Tees Valley Sport Partnership has been delighted at the success of the scheme. The Tees Valley area achieved the second highest retention levels for the programme in the country, new figures released today reveal.
A very impressive 92 % of young people accessing the taster sessions completed the 10 week programmes in the Tees Valley. Basketball and squash have proved very popular activities in Middlesbrough, with orienteering attracting large numbers of young people on taster sessions in Redcar and Cleveland. The less traditional sport of dodgeball was a success in Darlington, with badminton in Stockton and trampolining in Hartlepool also attracting excellent numbers.
Tees Valley Sport Executive Director Jean Lordon says" Sport Unlimited is a great way to discover new sports and our partners are delivering lots of innovative activities that have clearly caught the imagination of young people. We are hopeful that the next year will see even more young people discovering the fun of sport through the Sport Unlimited programme".
Encouragingly, researchers found that nationally two in five youngsters are continuing to play sport afterwards - in clubs and with their friends. The Partnership is working closely with national governing bodies for sport, local clubs, schools, colleges and local authority sports development teams to make sure that more young people continue to take part in sport in their neighbourhoods and communities.
Emily Rose from Redcar said "Since starting fitness class, my confidence levels have improved and have really enjoyed the experience in both school and gym, doing various exercises to keep me fit and healthy"
Richard Taylor from Middlesbrough said "I have gained confidence since I have joined this sports group, I have also got a lot fitter and it has been good fun"
The Minister for Sport and the Olympics, Hugh Robertson MP, said, "Sport Unlimited is going from strength to strength, encouraging hundreds of thousands of young people to try sport.
"One of my top priorities is to ensure that we deliver a sporting legacy from the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This scheme is part of that, inspiring a new generation of children to get out there and take part, no matter what their age or ability."
Thanks to this approach being taken by Sport England, the programme is proving a success in tackling the gender divide in sport. Fewer than two in five adults playing sport are women, but with Sport Unlimited in the North East, the split is almost 50/50.
Sport Unlimited is playing a key role in delivering a lasting participation legacy from the Games. The Tees Valley Sport Unlimited programme has been awarded the Inspire Mark by London 2012 - recognising the impact it is having on young people.
Richard Lewis, Sport England's Chair, said, "Finding your sport and developing a love for it at a young age is an important step towards continuing participation when you're older. Through Sport Unlimited, Sport England is making sport appeal to more youngsters in the North East by giving them the freedom to choose the sports they play. London 2012 is just around the corner so there has never been a better time to get out and get active."
For more information and photographs please contact Sarah Stephenson, Projects Officer, Tees Valley Sport on 01642 342287 or email s.stephenson@tees.ac.uk
