Sport England praised in select committee hearing

The Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee today heard further evidence on the subject of sport in our communities.

Panel 1 witnesses

• Ollie Dudfield, Executive Director, Sport for Development Coalition
• Lisa Wainwright, Chief Executive, Sport and Recreation Alliance

Replying to Alex Davies-Jones MP (Labour, Pontypridd), Lisa Wainwright said the last 12 months had been challenging but many of the Alliance's members had adapted, some by going online. Research of over 1400 clubs had shown there had been a 60% reduction in membership levels during the pandemic. The prediction was that many of those members would return. There had also been a 25-30% reduction in paid coaches. Ollie Dudfield pointed out the shifts in activities during the pandemic, with the drop off of team and group activities. There had been a focus on three areas: adaptions, the support the coalition could offer and plans for rebuilding.

Lisa Wainwright added that combat sports and indoor team sports had suffered most, but others like cycling and canoeing had flourished. She said the alliance had been flexible in its response and had tried to adapt to changing regulations. They had provided significant support, alongside DCMS and Sport England, in writing guidance for outdoor activities. There had also been seminars and workshops provided. The APPG for sport had been very supportive.

Ollie Dudfield pointed out that one challenge was caused by the digital divide across the country, with different levels of access to connectivity. Other concerns were the difficulty in collecting data and measuring the value of support.

Committee chair Julian Knight MP (Conservative, Solihull) asked what the UK was doing wrong regarding child obesity, especially compared to Australia and New Zealand. Ollie Dudfield said one issue was the difference between sport as a commercial activity and a public service, creating a barrier of affordability. But there were support schemes. Another issue was around education and the use of facilities by community groups. He agreed with Mr Knight that school facilities were underutilised and there should be a partnership between schools, community and sport to get facilities used.

Lisa Wainwright said Sport England's Join the Movement campaign had been a fantastic way of demonstrating how different tools could be used at home to keep active.

Mr Knight asked if there was an over-focus on elite sport. Lisa Wainwright said elite sportsmen provided inspiration and much of this work was done unnoticed. There was a symbiotic relationship between elite sport and grassroots sport. She felt the level of investment in elite sports was worthwhile, but there could be regulatory change to support grassroots sport. It was not just about the money.

Steve Brian (Conservative, Winchester) asked about the effectiveness of support. Lisa Wainwright said Sport England's support for grassroots sport had been incredibly effective and fast. She admitted to being a past critic of Sport England but, "this year has been so impressive in terms of organisation and leadership. They have been absolutely exceptional and continue to be." On diversity in sport governance, she thought Sport England was aware of the lack of diversity on boards and were working to improve that.

Replying to Giles Watling (Conservative, Clacton) on the question of diversity, Lisa Wainwright said it would help to have more diverse coaches and leaders. That was about targeted interventions in specific communities. Sport England was already involved in this, but local community trusts were also incredibly important.

Julie Elliott (Labour, Sunderland Central) also focussed on diversity. Lisa Wainwright pointed to research that showed the biggest limiting element was poor access to leisure facilities, largely due to lack of local funding. There had to be a change in the provision of these facilities to get more diverse participation in sport. It was often a case of ensuring that existing facilities were made available.

Heather Wheeler (Conservative, South Derbyshire) asked about the community ownership fund. Ollie Dudfield said there were two elements of support within the scheme: capacity building and feasibility studies. This was essential. On NGBs, Lisa Wainwright told Ms Wheeler they were trying to look after all levels of their sports. They were also looking at staffing costs, with a lot of funding released to grassroots clubs.

Clive Efford (Labour, Eltham) asked if a lack of definition of 'grassroots sport' made it difficult to get funding into all sports at the lower level. Lisa Wainwright said many of the governing bodies provided funding and support all the way through the various levels.

Panel 2 witnesses:

• Joanna Coates, Chief Executive, UK Athletics
• Jane Nickerson, Chief Executive, Swim England
• David Pond, Chief Executive, GB Wheelchair Rugby

Damian Green MP (Conservative, Ashford) asked about the impacts of the pandemic. Jane Nickerson said lockdown had had a massive impact on swimming. She was certain there would be rebuilding of the organisation and clubs, but it would not be so easy to replace the ageing pools stock. Swim England was working closely with Sport England on this. She agreed that facilities were in crisis. Joanna Coates said the pandemic had impacted staffing levels and membership was significantly down. She agreed that elite athletics would be impacted in years to come by the smaller grassroots participation. David Pond praised Sport England in enabling staff to be kept on, even though wheelchair rugby as a sport had come to a halt entirely over the past year. But he was optimistic about the future of the sport.

Kevin Brennan (Labour, Cardiff West) asked about the role during the pandemic of Sport England and UK Sport. David Pond said Sport England had been very helpful in rolling over funding. It had been possible to create a virtual community and provide online training and social events. Jane Nickerson said Sport England had been "incredible" not just in a funding sense but also on the facilities side. They had also been instrumental in bringing the whole sector together. Joanna Coates agreed the response from Sport England had been swift and strong.

Replying to Clive Efford, Joanna Coates and Jane Nickerson agreed that elite sport not was funded at the expense of grassroots sport. More support was needed on issues such as safeguarding. On availability of facilities, Joanna Coates said facilities were good in the UK, but there was an issue with a lack of stadiums. Jane Nickerson said Swim England was working with Sport England to develop new facilities and getting "the right water in the right place."

Julie Elliott asked why there was a perception that elite sport was funded to the detriment of local sport. Joanne said the reason was that elite sport was televised, but she was convinced that people were encouraged to participate in sport when they saw elite sportspeople doing well.