Community Sports Hub partners across South Lanarkshire have been supported through Summer of Sport funding to deliver sport and activity programmes in local communities.
The Summer of Sport programme, made possible by £20m investment from Scottish Government, aims to encourage children and young people aged 3 to 26 to get active, stay active, and enjoy the benefits of physical activity.
The funding is being managed locally to meet the needs and priorities of each community.
A network for change
In South Lanarkshire, Community Sport Hub partners used some of the funding to freshen up public football parks with new goal nets, freshly cut grass and lining.
These pitches were selected based on accessibility for communities, operational support and ongoing work locally with community partners.
Clubs and partners received sports equipment grants and delivered structured activities and events in the heart of local communities whilst also encouraging the use of local public parks and spaces.
Gavin Maclure, Programme Development Officer for South Lanarkshire Community Sport Hubs said:
“The combination of preparing public spaces and investing in community partners was both deliberate and effective in meeting local need and maximising the impact.”
Gavin added, “The investment in community groups diversified the project, from football parks to a range of sports equipment which was made available for the community to access to encourage street sport, and for families and communities to come together.
“Whilst access is casual, the legacy is that this will be available in the future, the community events really inspired participation with families, residents and sports clubs coming together throughout the summer.”
Investing in communities
The objective behind the implementation of the funding has been to build up relationships within communities and allow for increased access and inclusion to sport and healthy activities – with no barriers of travel, cost or pre-booking.
In Hamilton, Hillhouse Residents and Tenants Association used funding to equip their community garden with various sports equipment that can be used in the surrounding areas for street sport.
In partnership with South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, local sports clubs Kirkwood’s Martial Arts Academy, Clydesdale Netball, Burnbank Bowling Club and Blantyre Celtic ran 10 community events over five weeks with around 50-60 children and families attending.
One local resident said:
“The sport events were a great opportunity for the young people to try different sports and learn new skills. The Tenants Association recreational area was used by families most days, including the vegetable garden which helped people make connections with others while children could play and be supervised.”
Creating lasting impact
In Cambuslang, both Circuit Youth Club and Springhall & Whitlawburn Youth Development Trust ran programmes using sports equipment in local spaces where families might otherwise struggle. One of these locations was the revitalised Peter Brownlee Park, where Circuit Youth Club delivered structured community activity sessions and promoted use of the football pitch and new goal nets.
Natalie Kirk of Circuit Youth Club said, “The programme has really helped the young people physically active during the holidays and built social confidence through teamwork and meeting new people. Some of the kids had never played volleyball or badminton so we are hoping to continue these in centre. The goal nets were a big hit with the community and brought people from all ages together.”
Springhall and Whitlawburn Youth Development Trust ran a similar programme with seven community sessions for locals, in addition to setting up a lending library for the equipment that families, groups and clubs can use.
Kimberley Brown of Springhall and Whitlawburn Youth Development Trust said:
“Summer of Sport funding made a huge difference to our Summer Programme! We worked closely with our young people to identify which sports they would like to try and having all the equipment now means we can continue sports sessions throughout the year.
In East Kilbride, East Kilbride Rugby Club ran a drop-in multi-sport session twice a week and the football pitch had nets installed where casual use for families was encouraged.
East Kilbride Rugby Club are taking over this facility as part of a Community Asset Transfer and this enabled the club to build relations with the community and provide accessible family activities.
Graham Porter of East Kilbride Rugby said:
“We saw great buy in from the local demographic area surrounding Dunedin Park and it’s really helped our ongoing relationship with the friends of Dunedin community group.”
He added, “It was great to see local children getting outdoors and taking part in a variety of sports throughout the summer holidays. Equipment grants for football goals, netball stands, basketball stands, pop up tennis, rugby, speakers and snack packs provided a genuine community feel and the improved pitches will help create welcoming spaces for free, informal activity in the future."
The improved football goals at more than 20 locations featured information cards with fun street football games, encouraging young people to be active independently, without the need for coaching or advance booking.
Around 100 children between the ages of 3 and 26 have already taken part in activities with over 500 visits at 25 community events or sessions. Additionally, through local feedback, it is anticipated that around 10-20 people have been independently using the football parks daily.
