Sebastian Coe, Chair of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, have visited Yorkshire to award the London 2012 Inspire mark to ‘Steps to Inclusion’, a innovate coach education programme that strives to enhance the number of high quality participating opportunities available to people with disabilities across South Yorkshire. This was the 500th Inspire Mark to be awarded to a project and event inspired by the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.
The Inspire programme is an opportunity for everyone to be part of the London 2012 Games, a broad participation programme spanning sport participation, education, sustainability, volunteering and business opportunities & skills. By using the power of the Games to inspire change, the programme encourages non-commercial organisations to create new opportunities to inspire young people and encourage the whole of the UK to join in.
The presentation to Steps to Inclusion took place at the London 2012 Inspire network event at the University of Leeds School of Music. The event is an opportunity for Inspire projects to come together, share ideas and best practice, learn more about London 2012 resources and initiatives and to engage in practical workshops to help develop their projects. The inaugural Inspire network event took place in London at the end of March 2010 this event in Yorkshire is the first of a programme of network events that will take place across UK.
Steps to Inclusion is an innovative coach education programme combining workshops, practical sessions and further training opportunities striving to enhance the number of high quality participation opportunities available to people with disabilities across South Yorkshire.
Michelle Dent, project lead for Steps to Inclusion said: ‘We feel very proud to be awarded the Inspire mark by Lord Sebastian Coe and Hugh Robertson and privileged to be recognised as the 500th Inspire project. We very much hope that this recognition proves to be a catalyst for driving the programme forward.’
Sebastian Coe, LOCOG Chair, said: 'Part of our vision in hosting the London 2012 Paralympic Games is to showcase the Games as a sporting competition for elite athletes, so I’m delighted to be awarding the 500th Inspire Mark to ‘Steps to Inclusion’, a project that is helping fulfil our ambition by using an innovative coach education programme to enhance the number of high quality participation opportunities available to people with disabilities.
‘London 2012 will have literally inspired change and personal bests in millions of people across the UK through the Inspire programme and it was fantastic to make this presentation at the incredibly successful Inspire Network event in Yorkshire, where many organisations were attending to find out more about how they can benefit from becoming part of the London 2012 Inspire programme.’
Minister for Sport and Olympics, Hugh Robertson MP said: ‘I am very pleased to have come to Yorkshire to help present the 500th Inspire Mark to 'Steps to Inclusion'. I have seen great Inspire mark projects from across the region at the Network event. All of them prove the power of London 2012 to inspire people, particularly the young, to get involved and benefit from the Games.’
For more information on the London 2012 Inspire programme, visit
www.london2012.com/beinspired – Ends –
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http://www.twitter.com/london2012 Notes to editors: London 2012 Inspire programme:An Olympic and Paralympic first, the London 2012 Inspire programme officially recognises outstanding non-commercial projects and events inspired by the Games.
The Inspire programme is run by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It is an opportunity for everyone to be part of the London 2012 Games – a broad participating programme spanning sport participation, education, sustainability, volunteering and business opportunities and skills. New opportunities are being created to inspire young people and encourage the whole of the UK to join in.
For more details visit:
www.london2012.com/beinspired Steps to InclusionSteps to Inclusion combines workshops and practical sessions with further training opportunities and was developed through dialogue with the South Yorkshire Disability Sport and Physical Activity Steering Group, local clubs and coaches. The project aims to works alongside national initiatives such as Playground to Podium (P2P) requiring local participation exit routes and is the first disability themed project in the region to be recognised by the Inspire programme.
Anyone interested in taking part in the program should contact Michelle Dent, South Yorkshire Disability Development Officer to register their interest.
Email: michelle.dent@sysport.co.uk Tel: 0114 223 5680
www.sysport.co.uk/disability www.fdso.co.uk
Example Inspire mark projects:
‘Street Games: Legacy Leaders’ – Street Games
National
Legacy/Sport‘Street Games: Legacy Leaders’ is based on the concept of doorstep sport, delivered to young people where, when and how they want it. This can range from five-a-side football or basketball on a housing estate, to handball sessions in the local community centre. Coaches and young volunteers are recruited from the same communities as the young people the projects seek to engage with, helping promote greater cohesion within neighbourhoods.
Legacy Leaders aims to build, develop and sustain a network of grass-root projects in disadvantaged communities, helping more young people to access sport. It is hoped the programme will provide one million young people living in deprived areas with access to sport by 2012.
Operating in the most deprived areas in England and Wales, the programme aims to ensure that the inspirational power of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is felt at grassroots. Its legacy should ensure all young people have the opportunity to take part in sport, regardless of their social background or where they live.
www.streetgames.org
‘Step Up Bradford’ – City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council
Yorkshire
CultureMovement and dance played a key role in Bradford Council’s ‘Step up Bradford’, Yorkshire’s main Open Weekend event in 2009. Over 2,000 dancers of all ages, shapes and sizes performed a routine inspired by Olympic sports such as Synchronised Swimming, Taekwondo and Basketball.
With something for everyone, this event allowed amateurs and local dance groups to rub shoulders with and be inspired by professionals. The event was a fantastic cultural addition to Bradford’s summer programme of activity. It also gave local performers the chance to attend dance workshops and training.
http://www.london2012.com/events/step-up-bradford.php‘Sports Media Modules’ – Sheffield Hallam University
Yorkshire
Legacy/Volunteering/Education‘Sports Media Modules’ is a project designed to introduce students to the process and practice of working with the media during major sports events. The project will give students the opportunity to work with the media in the period leading up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. On successful completion of the modules, Sheffield Hallam students will be well placed to apply for volunteer positions. These include supporting roles for the 5,600 accredited media representatives at the Games Main Press Centre and at London 2012 sporting venues.
The project will continue long after the Games have concluded. This will ensure students are able to help deliver media operations for other major UK sporting events.
Jonathan Edwards, Olympic gold medallist and LOCOG Board member said: ‘The Sheffield Hallam ‘Sports Media Modules’ programme offers students a unique opportunity to launch their careers by being involved in one of the biggest media and sporting events in the world. It has been awarded the London 2012 Inspire mark in recognition of the education and participation opportunities it will create.’
http://www.sch.ac.uk/mews/release.html?ID=578 ‘The Pitch’ – University of Ulster
Northern Ireland
Legacy/Business/Education‘The Pitch’ is a business-education project led by the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the University of Ulster. It is aimed at final-year students studying a 12-week business module. The module requires students to research a possible economic opportunity related to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and put in place a realistic business plan to assess its feasibility. Students are then required to pitch their business plans to a panel of business experts, who provide feedback.
The first round of ‘The Pitch’ took place in March 2010. The panel, which comprised representatives from Deloitte, the Northern Ireland Tourist Board and Invest Northern Ireland, was provided with an executive summary of each student’s business plan. Each student then presented their business plan. The panel provided brief verbal feedback after each pitch. Once all the pitches were complete, the students returned for a group session and were given a broad summary of what went well. The panel also highlighted potential areas for improvement, and provided general advice and tips.
‘Personal Best’ – London Development Agency
London
Legacy/Volunteering
Among the first Inspire volunteering projects was ‘Personal Best’. This is a groundbreaking programme that aims to encourage unemployed and socially excluded individuals to learn new skills, engage with their communities, raise their aspirations and increase their employment chances. They are motivated by the prospect of volunteering at the London 2012 Games.
‘Personal Best’ participants take an accredited training course, gaining a nationally recognised qualification. Once they have completed the course, further support is provided to help people go on to more training, or find employment or volunteering opportunities.
Some of the events that the graduates have supported include the Princess Diana memorial concert, the London Marathon and the Beijing Torch Relay.
Tessa Jowell, Minister for the Olympics, said: ‘This initiative is helping develop skills and instil confidence in people, providing individuals and whole communities with benefits for decades to come.’
Seb Coe, LOCOG Chair, added: ‘As the 2008 Beijing Games proved, volunteers make the difference between a good Games and a great Games for athletes and spectators alike. ‘Personal Best’ provides relevant skills training to ensure people have an opportunity to be a part of this once in-a-lifetime experience.’
http://www.personalbestprogramme.co.uk/‘Bollywood Steps’ and ‘Boys Dancing’
West Midlands
Culture‘People Dancing’ is a programme of activities aimed at getting people across the West Midlands moving. It will inspire people of all ages, skills and abilities to make dance part of their everyday lives. Two of the flagship Inspire projects that make up People Dancing are ‘Bollywood Steps’ and ‘Boys Dancing’.
‘Bollywood Steps’ has given three free performances to over 10,000 people in Birmingham’s Victoria Square as part of the 175th anniversary celebrations of Birmingham Town Hall. There were a series of workshops leading up to the event, and the project cast were joined by specially recruited dancers and dhol drummers for a performance enhanced by fireworks, water effects and stunning lighting.
‘Boys Dancing’ is a three-year programme led by Warwick Arts Centre that allows boys to take the lead, with support from professional dancers in creating new dance works. By the end of the programme, hundreds of boys and young men will have enjoyed the challenges, exhilaration, discipline and sheer fun of making and sharing dance.
Project manager, ‘Boys Dancing’: ‘The aim of ‘Boys Dancing’ is to prove to boys that dance is exciting, engaging, challenging and fun. We want to show that dance is a wonderful mix of spontaneous, physical and mental activity – it requires physical strength as in sport and it provides a great workout for the mind.’
http://www.wmfor2012.com/themes/culture/cultural/people-dancing/default.aspx‘Our Sporting Life’ – The Sports Heritage Network
South East
Culture‘Our Sporting Life’ is a community project that aims to reveal hidden sporting histories, forgotten heroes, objects and stories in groups across the UK. Local people and sports organisations are asked to put forward memorabilia that help tell the story of their sporting life and that will eventually contribute to exhibitions in local museums.
This project is being driven by the River & Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames. The first of the local exhibitions, ‘Our Sporting Life Henley’ was opened by Roy Clare, Chief Executive of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), together with double Paralympic gold medallist Graham Edmunds and former world and British mountain bike champion Rob Warner. Highlights from the exhibition include photographs of local hero Montague Spencer Ell, a champion croquet player who lost his arms in the First World War but continued to win local championships. He is credited with significantly advancing sport for disabled people and developing sports at Stoke Mandeville.
‘Sport is a pulsating artery of life in our communities. It brings people together and shapes us as individuals. Sporting objects and memorabilia provide particularly powerful and unique records of our lives and national events. We look forward to a fantastic series of exhibitions over the next two years.’ Paul Mainds, Chairman of Our Sporting Life steering committee, and Chief Executive of the River and Rowing Museum, Henley-on-Thames
www.oursportinglife.co.ukTackling Social Exclusion in the North East: The HEFCE Project – Sports Universities North East England
North East
Legacy/EducationThis Inspire project uses the power of the Games to encourage the student body to take action to tackle inequalities in deprived communities in the North East. The project encourages students to volunteer as sports coaches, officials and administrators. These students will be working with the socially excluded people of their communities and they will develop a deeper level of understanding of the issues faced by hard-to-reach groups.
A focus of the project is to provide young people with an understanding the Olympic and Paralympic values. Many of the people who’ll be involved are socially excluded and by breaking down barriers and offering opportunities the project helps to instill the values – determination and courage to succeed and excel, respect for others, creation of friendships through meeting new people and taking inspiration from the university environments which they are experiencing and from the volunteers that lead them.
“We want to use our resources – whether they be buildings, students, staff or coaches – to do something we have never done before,” said Neil Hurren, Regional Universities Sports Co-ordinator
www.sunee.org.ukPeople Making Waves
Volunteer Development Scotland
Scotland People Making Waves (PMW) is a 4 year programme funded by Legacy Trust UK (LTUK) and the Scottish Arts Council (SAC) which aims to invite the people of Scotland to connect with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in ‘waves’ of voluntary action that will focus on creating a legacy through people’s awareness and involvement in the Olympic Movement. It is the first project in Scotland to be awarded the prestigious London 2012 Inspire Mark in June 2009 and was officially launched at the July 2009 Open Weekend.
The programme seeks to inspire people to share their story and get involved. This year there have been 12 Scottish Wave of Change events where people have had the chance to have their say in how they can bring about change through the Olympic Values. A total of 4 volunteer exchanges have taken place between London and Scotland where individuals have been inspired to try and share new experiences through volunteering. All these achievements have been captured on the My Volunteering digital story book which was launched in January 2010.
www.peoplemakingwaves.org.uk As it heads towards its £2bn budget for staging the Olympic and Paralympic Games, LOCOG has seven domestic Tier One Partners - adidas, BMW, BP, British Airways, BT, EDF and Lloyds TSB. There are seven domestic Tier Two Supporters – Adecco, ArcelorMittal, Cadbury, Cisco, Deloitte, Thomas Cook and UPS. There are seventeen domestic Tier Three Suppliers and Providers – Airwave, Atkins, Boston Consulting Group, Crystal CG, Eurostar, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, GSK, Gymnova, Holiday Inn, John Lewis, McCann Worldgroup, Mondo, Next, The Nielsen Company, Populous, Ticketmaster and Trident.
There is now one domestic Tier One Paralympic Games Partner, Sainsbury’s.
The Worldwide Olympic Partners signed up for London 2012 are Coca-Cola, Acer, Atos Origin, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Samsung and Visa.
