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Rural Derbyshire lands £600,000 award for Village Games

22 February 2010

The Community Sports Trust has secured the investment of £600,000 for the Derbyshire Village Games from the £10m Rural Communities Fund, which was launched after Sport England research revealed that two thirds of the local authorities with the lowest sports participation rates are in rural areas.

Other contributors to the project include each of the rural District Councils, Derbyshire County Council, Derbyshire County PCT, Derbyshire Sport, the Peak District National Park Authority, Rural Action Derbyshire and the National Governing Bodies of Sport in the area.

The Village Games Project aims to support rural communities to develop new activities, events and competitions which will continue long beyond the three years of funding.

Hayley Lever, Director of the Community Sports Trust, said: “This funding will help us bring Derbyshire together and get more people playing sport in our rural communities. The sports on offer will be a lot of fun but there will also be a competitive edge to some – and there will be something for everyone.

“We want to harness the excitement of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, by offering the right activities, delivered by the right people in the right places to increase participation.”

The Village Games will benefit from a team of six full-time Village Sports Co-ordinators, employed in each of the rural districts (designated as eligible by Sport England). These are Amber Valley, Bolsover, North East Derbyshire, Derbyshire Dales, High Peak and South Derbyshire.

There will also be a full time Coach and Volunteer Development Officer in the Derbyshire Dales.

The project will start in April 2010.

The total project cost of Derbyshire Village Games is £856,614, with additional funding secured from a wide range of local partners. Sport England define rural communities on the basis of the Government’s Rural and Urban Areas Classification.

The local authority areas included within this project are Amber Valley Borough Council, Bolsover District Council, Derbyshire Dales District Council, High Peak Borough Council, North East Derbyshire District Council and South Derbyshire District Council.