£150,000 of National Lottery Funding Awarded to British Judo Association Towards Tackling of Inequalities of Sport and Physical Activity
The British Judo Association (BJA) has been awarded £150,000 of National Lottery funding from Sport England (SE)’s Tackling Equalities Fund which aims to tackle inequalities in activity levels through working with its partners to reach those most in need as a result of the impact of Covid-19.
The British Judo Trust and nine English Areas are contributing from their own funding to support this innovative programme which will see the overall funding pot hit the £200,000 mark.
The funding follows an extensive bid from the Association detailing how the funds will help judo clubs and facilities across Great Britain.
The funding award has allowed British Judo and Sport England to launch a “Club Grant Scheme” today which was detailed to clubs in our recent club webinars.
Working alongside the Association, Sport England will be the primary distributors of the fund and will have the final decision on the awarding of any Sport England Award.
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected everyone in a sudden and dramatic manner, with an unprecedented impact on health and of course daily life. We are therefore profoundly worried about the well-being of our members during this difficult time and recognise that the effects of this crisis will have extraordinary longer-term consequences on our clubs and members.
Working in partnership with SE, the BJA and English Areas have therefore introduced a one off, time limited Grants Programme. This funding will primarily support the revival of clubs and the return of members within the nine English Areas, once the lockdown has been lifted.
All registered clubs within the BJA’s English Areas are eligible and can therefore apply for a one-off grant award of up to £500.00. The grant will be available to support revenue funded activities such as coaching and member costs, also running costs.
Clubs will be able to apply for grants from October through to the end of January 2021. This period may be extended, subject to the availability of funding and demand.
The objectives of the Grants Programme are to minimise the impact of Covid -19 on our clubs and members by:
- Supporting and encouraging our members return to judo
- Supporting coaches and their accessibility arrangements
- Providing resources that enable clubs to re-open
- Support coaches and members by enabling them to retain their coaching and other necessary qualifications (DBS, First Aid, Safeguarding).
Sport England’s work and contribution to Tackling Inequalities focuses on reducing the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on activity levels in under-represented groups, ensuring gaps between those who are active and those who aren’t, does not widen during this period.
Therefore, any funding that clubs apply for must be aimed at supporting the return to judo for the following primary priority groups – Lower Social Economic Groups (LSEG), Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME), Disabled People or People with Long Term Health Conditions. Other secondary priority groups may include Women and Girls, Older People and/or Children and Young People (CYP).
With a strong understanding of the needs and issues in their areas, Sport England has initially channeled £3.3m through the 43 Active Partnerships across England to support community groups in their areas as a result of the impacts of COVID-19. We are also investing further funding through National Partner organisations that have specific expertise and reach to our target audiences.
British Judo Chief Executive Andrew Scoular was thrilled with the outcome from Sport England:
“It is fantastic that Sport England and the National Lottery have awarded us £150,000 for our Club Grant Scheme. We feel that this investment will make a real impact for our clubs, many of whom have struggled throughout the pandemic.”
“Our Scheme will hopefully alleviate some of these issues and give our clubs the opportunity to re-open once Government restrictions are relaxed further and indoor contact sports are given the go-ahead to return.”
Tim Hollingsworth, Sport England’s Chief Executive, said:
“We are proud to be able to provide funding and support to the British Judo Association in this difficult period. This funding will help support our valuable community infrastructure that is so important in keeping the nation active and will also provide important connections and reconnections for people whose lives have been affected by COVID-19 and for whom remaining active is so important for their physical, mental and social wellbeing. We know from our research and data that there are existing inequalities between groups when it comes to activity levels and COVID-19 has re-enforced these.”
“Thanks to the support of the National Lottery and its players, the Tackling Inequalities Fund will be both crucial and central to ensuring no-one is left behind when it comes to having the opportunity to be active during this period. This builds off the back of our £35m Community Emergency Fund that has already reached and supported over 7,500 community clubs and groups across England.”
