London Marathon Charitable Trust awards £1.1m to projects to get people active
The London Marathon Charitable Trust has announced its latest round of grants with more than £1.1million awarded towards the creation or renovation of 14 high quality, accessible and affordable facilities that will encourage and support participation in physical activity.
The awards include a grant of £150,000 to The Access to Sports Project towards tennis court improvements, the installation of floodlighting on six tennis courts and the development of a new pavilion building at Finsbury Park in Haringey to increase use of the site and make it more appealing to under-represented groups, particularly less active children and young people. The charity has a successful track record of providing a wide range of accessible and affordable sports activities to disadvantaged and disengaged young people in the London Boroughs of Hackney, Haringey and Islington.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich has been awarded £150,000 towards the development of new indoor clip and climb facilities and a new inclusive playground as part of the wider improvements to the indoor and outdoor physical activity and sport facilities at Sutcliffe Park. The new facilities will provide a range of accessible opportunities for the local community to be active, and will particularly benefit children and young people.
Swan Housing Association has been awarded £16,000 towards the purchase and installation of outdoor gym equipment on the Bow Cross Estate in Tower Hamlets to offer a range of community physical activity participation opportunities on a deprived, densely populated housing estate.
The full list of all the grants awarded is:
| Location | Grantee | Description | Award |
| Croydon | Croydon Council and Lakes Playground Action group (LPAG) | Towards the redesign and refurbishment of a play area in South Norwood lakes | £19,500 |
| Ealing | London Borough of Ealing | Towards upgrading a MUGA (Multi Use Games Areas), providing a new two-lane cricket practice net facility and a new outdoor gym at The Dormers Hub | £100,000 |
| Greenwich | London Borough of Greenwich | Towards the improvement of the indoor and outdoor physical activity and sport facilities at Sutcliffe Park | £150,000 |
| Haringey | The Access to Sports Project | Towards tennis court improvements, the installation of floodlighting on four tennis courts and the development of a new pavilion building at Finsbury Park | £150,000 |
| Haringey | Finsbury Park Sports Partnership | Towards the cost of stabilising the entire track footprint of The London Marathon Athletics Track - Finsbury Park | £100,000 |
| Hounslow | Bedfont Sports Limited | Towards conversion of the main grass football pitch at Bedfont Sports to a full size floodlit 3G Artificial Turf Pitch | £100,000 |
| Hounslow | Chiswick Cricket Club | Towards extending the clubhouse, updating changing facilities and replacing existing practice nets at Chiswick Cricket Club | £100,000 |
| Islington | City YMCA London | Towards a new fitness centre as part of the wider redevelopment of City YMCA’s Errol Street Hostel (full details to be announced at a later date) | £250,000 |
| Lewisham | London Borough of Lewisham | Towards tennis court improvements, floodlighting and a new electronic access system at Ladywell Fields | £100,000 |
| Merton | Wimbledon Racquets and Fitness Club | Towards the construction of a new accessible wet room in Wimbledon Racquets & Fitness Club | £16,698 |
| Surrey | Claygate Recreation Ground Trust | Towards the purchase and installation of an artificial cricket wicket for Claygate Cricket Club | £8,000 |
| Surrey | Newdigate C of E Endowed Infant School | Towards the replacement of an unsafe wall surrounding a well-used small pool on a school site in Dorking | £12,000 |
| Southwark | London Borough of Southwark and Friends of Dog Kennel Hill School | Towards the creation of a MUGA at Dog Kennel Hill Primary School | £5,744 |
| Tower Hamlets | Swan Housing Association | Towards the purchase and installation of outdoor gym equipment on the Bow Cross Estate | £16,000 |
Sir Rodney Walker, Chairman of The London Marathon Charitable Trust, said: “More than one in four people in England do less than 30 minutes of physical activity a week. However, research shows that those who are the least active would benefit the most from leading a more active lifestyle, even if it’s just gentle exercise such as yoga, fun activities done with friends such as recreational indoor climbing or personal challenge programmes held at outdoor gyms in parks. We are delighted to announce these awards which we believe will have a significant positive impact on participation in physical activity among those who are currently inactive.”
Sarah Ridley, Chief Grants Officer of The London Marathon Charitable Trust, said: “The Trustees make funding decisions four times a year and we are actively seeking high quality applications from organisations that will get more people physically active. The Trust is currently looking to support sustainable capital projects which can clearly demonstrate how the new or improved facilities will engage and support physically inactive people and under-represented groups to be more active and healthy.”
The London Marathon Charitable Trust was created in 1981 by Chris Brasher and John Disley, the founders of the London Marathon, to meet one of their founding aims to raise money for sport and recreational facilities. Their vision ensured that the profits from the London Marathon would go to The London Marathon Charitable Trust in perpetuity.
The Trust currently provides grants towards capital projects that inspire people to lead a more active lifestyle and increase the number of people regularly taking part in sports and physical activities.
The Trust is able to distribute grants in all areas where London Marathon Events Limited organises mass participation events: the 32 London boroughs and the City of London, Surrey, South Northamptonshire District Council area and Aylesbury Vale District Council area.
The total value of grants awarded by The Trust since 1981 is now over £63million to more than 1,140 projects. The next deadline for applications for Small and Major Capital Grants programmes is 17:00 on Tuesday 18 October. For more information on the Trust or the Capital Grants programmes, please visit http://www.lmct.org.uk or email [email protected].