scw gaining momentum

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sports council walescyngor chwaraeon cymru

introduction

the sports Council for Wales is the national

organisation responsible for developing

and promoting sport and physical activity

in Wales.

the Council is one of the main contributors

to ’Climbing higher’, the Welsh assembly

Government’s 20 year strategy for sport

and physical activity. the strategy sets

some challenging targets for increasing

physical activity levels in Wales. With only

59% of the population participating in a

recognised sport, ‘Climbing higher’ calls

for those partners working in the field

of sport and physical activity to work

together to promote the benefits of an

active lifestyle.

there are two major strands to the

Council’s work and increasing physical

activity is just one of them. achieving

excellence in Welsh sport is the other and

the Council has put systems in place

to develop the next generation of elite

competitors. identifying talent, ensuring it

is developed by gifted coaches, providing

appropriate competition and offering

excellent services are all key elements of

the Council’s work.

this publication outlines key recent

successes, demonstrating the contribution

the Council is making to the future

development of sport and physical activity

in Wales.

Further information on the work of the

Sports Council for Wales can be found by

visiting: www.sports-council-wales.org.uk

or by calling 0845 045 0904.

Talycopa AFC

Children’s water polo

grand final – Page 3

Striving for success

Page 4

Rhyl High School plays

for success – Page 5

Active commuting

Page 6

National judo facility

Page 7

Mainstreaming the Welsh

language – Page 8

From Mumbai to Maindy

Page 9

Teaming up with

Dragon sport – Page 11

Starting off on the right tee

Page 12

An exercise in learning -

Stephen Cox – Page 14

Toeing the line in Caerphilly

Page 15

North Wales’ talent support

network – Page 16

Healthy schools

Page 18

sports council wales

cyngor chwaraeon cymru

design: www.blacksheep.info

Gaining

momentum


sPortsCounCilFor Wales

00:00:01

after the success of a previous Community Chest grant, talycopa aFC in swansea had big plans to grow even further.

the Club obtained FaW Bronze

accreditation after its first

award, but they soon realised

there was no football activity

locally for children in the u7 and

u8 age groups.

after a second application, the

Club received a Community

Chest award to introduce two

new teams for the u7 and u8

age groups. in addition, the

Club will train six volunteers to

coach the new sides and it also

intends to recruit more female

coaches. talycopa aFC now

intends to apply for FaW silver/

Gold accreditation.

Children across south Wales put their aquatic skills to the test when they took part in the inaugural south Wales mini water polo grand final at aberdare Pool.

over 80 children aged 12 and under,

representing mini water polo leagues from

Bridgend, monmouthshire, swansea and

neath Port talbot, made it to the finals of

the new competition after beating their

counterparts at the south east and south

West Wales semi-finals.

having successfully offered mini water polo

as part of the Free swimming initiative in

the school holiday periods, the children’s

league was set up across south Wales

in 2007 and now extends beyond this to

provide sessions during term time.

Funding for the league was granted

through the Welsh assembly Government’s

Free swimming improvement Fund. over

£7,000 was invested to purchase new

equipment, provide coach education and

develop mini water polo clubs across south

Wales, resulting in over 300 new children

training and competing weekly.



00:00:02

talycopa aFC



00:00:03

Children take

part in

water polo

grand final

Kate arnold has fierce ambitions to succeed and has london 2012 firmly in her sights.

Born with a congenital

amputation of her left arm, she

has clocked a personal best

of 14.53s over 100m and 30.28s

over 200m which has made

her one of Britain’s brightest

Paralympic track talents.

it is her determination which

puts her in pole position for

london 2012. and she is no

stranger to success - a world-

class swimmer, she switched

from the pool to the track in

2006. Within 12 months of the

sporting switchover, arnold

headed for Chinese taipei

where she competed in the

iWas World Championships

– she finished sixth in both the

100m and 200m.

she is now a member of

darrell maynard’s training stable

which means that she is able to

train alongside her role model

John mcFall, who is also a

serious contender for

the Paralympic podium.

a member of the disability sport

Wales academy, london 2012 is

a definite target for Kate.

“it would be so nice to race

there. i think competing on

home ground would be

fantastic.” said Kate recently.

and with her current success,

you wouldn’t bet against it.

rhyl high school has recently established a new table tennis club to encourage young people to enjoy the sport.

as part of their commitment to the sports

Council’s 5x60 scheme, the school initially

arranged ‘taster’ sessions for pupils using

equipment that was already available in

the school. Following the success of the

taster sessions, a regular lunchtime club

was established to run once a week.

Working closely with the table tennis

association of Wales, local coaches were

identified to assist in running the sessions.

more enthusiastic senior players were then

encouraged to attend coach education

courses enabling them to tutor the

younger players and further enhance the

sustainability of the club.

the sessions have now grown from a

lunchtime school club into a regular

community club, and rhyl table tennis

Club now meets twice a week for two-

hour sessions. the first hour is set aside for

younger players (primary & secondary

age) and the second hour for seniors

(parents of younger players and other

interested adults).

With coaches now being sourced from

within the club, additional funding has

been provided through Community

Chest for coach education.



00:00:04

striving for success



00:00:05

rhyl high school

plays for success

one of the trust’s aims is to

promote active commuting

and physical activity, and this

has led to the organisation

being nominated as one of

the sports Council for Wales’

workplace intervention projects.

a travel survey was undertaken

by the trust to identify the

distance travelled by staff

to work, and at the same

time, identify the barriers that

prevents them from walking or

cycling to work.

swansea nhs trust employs 9,000 people across seven sites. the majority of the trust’s workforce is based at singleton and morriston hospitals where acute healthcare services are located.

Following the survey, the

trust appointed a travel and

transport Co-ordinator to

promote active commuting.

since the appointment of

the Co-ordinator, a number

of measures have been

introduced including the

relocation of the staff car park,

reassessment of parking permit

criteria, car sharing incentives

and free breakfasts for walkers &

cyclists, in an attempt to reduce

car travel by staff to work.

the national dojo will be

available all day and every

day to squads of all ages and

abilities and will provide vital

mat space for local clubs. its

introduction will also ensure that

it meets the needs of Wales’

élite judo players and gives

them access to high levels of

coaching to give them the best

possible opportunity to fulfil their

future potential.

the Welsh Judo association

has for many years advocated

establishing a dedicated,

permanent training facility

in Wales. in particular, neil

adams mBe, the Welsh national

Coach, had stated that a

dedicated base is essential for

the development of the sport:

“having a dedicated dojo

in Wales will make a massive

difference when it comes to

building up a talent academy

and establishing links with clubs

and universities in Wales – and

it is the only way that we can

ensure that Wales can continue

to perform at the highest level

in the sport.”

a dedicated facility designed to cultivate the judo talent of the future is to be established at the Welsh institute of sport in Cardiff.



00:00:06

active commuting



00:00:07

Welsh institute

of sport to host

national judo

facility

the sports Council for Wales and the Welsh language Board have joined forces to increase the opportunities for people across Wales to access sport through the medium of Welsh.

a new Welsh language

development officer post has

been created by the sports

Council for Wales to ensure

that there are more coaches,

resources and provisions

available for people to be able

to access sport through the

Welsh language.

the partnership will aim to

work with governing bodies,

local authorities and sports

clubs and offer support to

those organisations who wish

to increase their own use of

the Welsh language, as well as

creating links between schools,

sports bodies and Welsh

language bodies.

in the first year, the partnership

will concentrate on three key

areas - Ceredigion, Conwy

and rhondda Cynon taf. it is

hoped that the partnership will

be rolled out to the remaining

local authorities in Wales in

future years.

Women in Cardiff are ditching the gym in favour of Bollywood. instead of pounding the treadmill and pumping weights, women are turning to Bollywood dance for their latest workout.



00:00:08

mainstreaming

the Welsh

language



00:00:09

From mumbai

to maindy

a 10-week Bollywood dance

course was arranged earlier

this year by Cardiff County

Council at the india Centre

- but the eager dancers were

disappointed by the lack of

sessions elsewhere in

the capital.

the problem was quickly

identified as a shortage of

qualified instructors, and

the sports Council for Wales

stepped in to fund the training

of additional leaders to the

tune of £4,000 through its

regeneration Challenge

programme.

Cardiff’s Bollywood

phenomenon started out at

maindy swimming Pool and

the Channel View Centre but

the dance mantra is soon to

spread to a number of schools

across the city with dance

sessions being arranged as

part of the 5x60 programme.

local dragon sport officer

helena mcdaid is always on

the look out for volunteers,

and was overjoyed when

she received such a positive

welcome from the Police to

get involved in helping out at

schools in the county.

a number of support officers

have completed an active

young People training Course,

and will now help run dragon

sport clubs offering 7-11

year olds the opportunity to

broaden their sporting interests

outside school.

through their involvement,

the officers hope they will

be able to establish valuable

links with local schools, make

themselves more familiar and

approachable to the young

people in their wards and

encourage healthy living.



00:00:10



00:00:11

teaming up with

dragon sport

Police Community support officers in torfaen have kicked-off a new initiative to encourage youngsters in the area to become more active.

Clays Farm Golf Club in Wrexham has benefited to the tune of £284,000 to develop a regional centre of excellence for players based in north east Wales.

the project includes the construction of a short game practice area, indoor putting facility as well as alterations to the driving range.

the planned improvements form part of

the Golf union of Wales’ national and

regional facility plan - ‘making a move’.

the aims are twofold. Firstly, the club will act

as an all-year-round venue for élite squad

sessions and, secondly, it is envisaged that

the improved facilities will help increase the

number of young people participating

in golf.



00:00:12

starting off on

the right tee



00:00:13

stephen has a passion for

learning that has enhanced

his own skills and opened a

world of sporting opportunities

for children and adults with

disabilities in Powys.

stephen has achieved

coaching qualifications in

athletics, basketball, cricket,

football and volleyball.

also, stephen has completed

specialist training qualifications

for coaching disabled children

and adults and subsequently

founded the n-able sport Club

in newtown.

stephen’s contribution was

recognised recently when he

was crowned as ‘2008 sports

learner of the year’, an award

sponsored by the sports

Council for Wales to recognise

the importance of learning

in sport.

When llanbrynmair’s stephen Cox lost his job as a rural outreach worker, he took the decision to return to learning and dedicated his time to completing a raft of coaching qualifications.

Phillipstown Community Centre is located in one of the most deprived areas of Caerphilly County Borough.

the Centre is working hard

to encourage local people

to become more physically

active, and have identified

line dancing as being a

relatively easy, fun activity that

doesn’t require a great deal

of endurance or strength and

is therefore a good way of

getting people involved.

With help from Community

Chest to fund an instructor

and equipment, the Centre

has now arranged weekly line

dancing classes. initially, the

classes are aimed at adults

in the community, although

younger members will also be

encouraged to join.



00:00:14

an exercise

in learning

- stephen Cox



00:00:15

toeing the line

in Caerphilly

the sports Council for Wales has unveiled a new support system for talented north Wales based sports people and their coaches.

the north Wales regional institute of sport

is a network of buildings, coaches and

support services, all working together to

help identify tomorrow’s talented individuals

and to supply them, and their coaches,

with access to a wide range of support to

meet their growing needs.

established with a £250,000 cash injection

from the Welsh assembly Government, the

north Wales regional institute - which will

work out of its headquarters at Plas menai

national Watersports Centre in Caernarfon

- will work in partnership with the national

Governing Bodies of sport to enable élite

athletes based in north Wales to access

high levels of coaching and support

services.

the ultimate aim will be to increase

representation from the north in national

and GB teams and squads.



00:00:16

north Wales’

sporting talent

reap benefits

of new support

network



00:00:17

meadowlane Primary school in Cardiff recently hosted a ‘healthy school’ event for pupils and teachers as part of the Pess scheme.

in the school grounds, 30 children participated in a tag

rugby skills session and mini rugby tournaments. inside

the building, dukebox dance got teachers and pupils

on their feet in a street and hip-hop workshop.

the event was arranged to promote health and active

lifestyles and was well received by both teachers and

pupils. the sessions were supported by eight post-16

pupils from llanrumney high school, who assisted the

dance and rugby coaches as part of their sports

leaders work.



00:00:18

healthy schools

scw gaining momentum

Documents

welsh sport

dragon sport page

physical activity levels

success page

recognised sport

field of sport

football activity

welsh language page