The Inspire projects in the South West have community at their heart, focusing on capturing the inspiration and excitement of the Games to change lives. There are more than 275 projects across our six Inspire themes in the South West.
Inspire people
Elliott Prendergast, RELAYS (Regional Educational Legacy in Arts and Youth Sport)
RELAYS is an ambitious Inspire project delivered through universities in the south west of England. It aims to inspire young people and their communities to participate in, create and promote cultural and sporting activities. Successful festivals, events, collaborations and mentoring have been delivered through the three strands of the RELAYS programme: sport, cultural and business support.
Elliott is a sprinter and was a key member of the South West’s silver medal winning 100m relay race team:
‘The RELAYS project and the University of Bristol have helped me in so many ways – since I have been receiving their support it has really made a big impact on me… RELAYS enables me to attend competitions by helping pay entry fees. By getting this support from both RELAYS and the university it gave me the chance to take part in the Community Sports Leadership Award.
‘This course has been beneficial to me in so many ways, such as in building up my confidence – developing on good ways of communication, how to alter coaching sessions for various age groups – it has meant I have had the chance to learn first aid and along the way I have met some great new people. I am now currently in the process of completing my 20-hours volunteering to finalise and complete this course, and this is allowing me to build on the skills I learnt in the tutorial part of the course in real life and different situations, which I am having a great time doing.
‘Another beneficial aspect to me within athletics is the group I train with. I am coached by a man named Dan Cossins, and within my group there are some fantastic athletes such as Danny Talbot who is a hopeful for London 2012. By being in the training environment that I am in, it really makes you understand what it takes to reach to the top level. Also, by having world-class athletes such as Danny to train with, it has shown me the discipline that is needed to become world class and how hard you must train. This has meant that I have been able to learn from a young age the discipline needed so I can make them a natural instinct.’
Inspire projects
Count me in
Project organiser: Team South West
Theme: Culture
Count me in is an annual festival of cultural celebrations across the South West region in the lead up to the 2012 Games. Events range from ‘Dinosaurs not allowed’ – a new twist on English Dance in Weymouth, which has had a fantastic response from the young people in the area – to ‘Bandstand Marathon’ – over 50 separate two-hour concerts at bandstands across the region.
Count me in launched as part of Open Weekend in 2009 and has happened every year since. The legacy of the project will be an annual major arts and cultural offering for local people and tourists.
Revive
Project organiser: Portland Community Partnership
Theme: Sustainability
Revive is a community-led project operating less than a mile from the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, venue for the 2012 Games Sailing events.
The Fortuneswell area of Portland was once thriving but is now run down, with few facilities for young people. The Revive Inspire project will restore this run-down area to its former glory and provide new opportunities and facilities for young people.
Initially, the project took over a vacant shop where the community was invited to put forward ideas about how the area could be improved. Over 500 ‘wishes’ were made – key areas identified for improvement include the provision of more festivals and events, more seats and benches and affordable youth activities.
A delivery team, led by local police, has been established and Portland held its first event through Revive in April 2010 – a skate and urban festival designed for young people. Further community projects and activities are underway through the Revive programme and it is hoped Revive will kick-start wider regeneration of the area.
Contact the Inspire Programmer in the South West
