APPENDIX 6 Sports Development Section Two - Milton ...

APPENDIX 6

Sports Development Section Two

Appendices (A – H)

Appendix A Bucks Sports Strategic Framework

Single System Building Partnerships, Planning & Performance

OutcomesDelivering Sporting Outcomes Contributing to Wider Social Outcomes

Performance Management & Learning

Performance measurement Knowledge Management

Service Standards Ensuring Safety & Child

Protection

Strategic Planning & Resources for sport

Community Engagement Whole Sport Plans

Facilities Funding

More Physically Literate

Higher Levels of Performance

Vibrant Economy & Workforce

Wider Access

More People Participating

Safer & Stronger Communities

Improved Education lifelong Learning

Healthier Communities

Values & PrinciplesIntegrity, Honesty &

Impartiality Partnership & Ownership

Fun & Enjoyment

Investing in people

LTAD & High Quality PE & Sport for Young People

Equal opportunity & inclusion

Quality, Best Value & Continuous Improvement

Athlete / Child centred

VisionAn Active & Successful Sporting County

Mission to create a ‘single system’ whereby all agencies work together more effectively to widen

access, increase participation, create clear pathways and improve levels of performance in sport and physical activity.

People Participation, Pathways & Performance

Wider AgendaHealthier communities

Safer & Stronger Communities

Economic vitality and workforce development

Education & skills

Pathways for Young PeopleEarly Years

PE, School Sport & Club Links Club Development

Competition & Events Talent ID & Development

FE/HE/16+

Widening Access Disability Sport Women & Girls

BEM Low Income/Deprivation

Older People ALL Children & Young People

Recreational & Everyday Activity

Active Communities Active Workplaces Active Transport Active Recreation

Partnership Working & Leadership

Bucks Sport Board County Sports Partnership District Sports Networks

School Sport Partnerships

Workforce DevelopmentCoaches

Volunteers Officials

Teachers Facility staff

Development Practitioners

Maximising the sporting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games

Appendix B Sports Development Team Structure

Nortoft Partnerships Ltd Milton Keynes Page 2 of 42 Sports Development, Leisure Facilities & Playing Pitch Strategy Appendices: Sports Development October 2008


Appendix C

Milton Keynes Sport and Physical Activity Alliance

The current membership of MKSPAA consists of: • Chair of Bancroft Meeting Place.(Community Managed Facility) • Head of PE at Sports College (Secondary School) • MK Primary Health Care Trust (Health) • Partnership Development Manager, (School and Sports

College) • Milton Keynes Council (Leisure Services) • Berks and Bucks Football Association (Governing Body) • Chair of the MK School’s Sports Federation • Chief Executive Shenley Leisure Centre Trust (Community

Leisure Centre) • Sport Milton Keynes (Voluntary Sport) • Newport Town Council (parish/town council managed

facilities) • MK Lions (Professional Sport) • MK Physical Education Advisor (LEA) • MK and Bucks County Sports Partnership • David Lloyd Health Club (Private) • Caldecotte Project


Appendix D

Consultation with the BME Communities

Background 1.1 The Community Strategy for Milton Keynes states that the City will be a

place that celebrates diversity and cares for all of its citizens, giving priority to those people in greatest need.

1.2 The 2001 census showed that the BME population of the City was 13.2%. The Milton Keynes Housing Study in 2006 showed that this had significantly increased to 17%.

1.3 The Milton Keynes Schools Census in spring 2007 revealed that BME groups represented about 24.9% of pupils, a rise of 2% from the 2006 findings.

1.4 The Housing study went on to say that “Our aim is not just for a diverse community but a cohesive

community. The Commission for Racial Equality notes that a cohesive community is one that is integrated and which celebrates the strength of its diversity. Integration in turn is not about merging into a single culture that is all the same. It means ensuring that ethnicity, religious or cultural differences do not define people's life chances and that people with different backgrounds work together to build a shared future. This is because society and communities benefit from diverse cultures.”

1.5 The BME Housing and Social Care Strategy (2007-2010) also found that in the Milton Keynes South Midlands (MKSM) Study of Population and Migration, evidence that there were larger numbers of BME people moving to the MKSM area than living in MKSM area and less white people were moving into the MKSM area than living in MKSM area. This would suggest that the BME population is increasing.

1.6 Since 2004, as a result of new member states from East Europe joining the EU, there has been a steady influx of people from these countries. The only information available about numbers of new workers is from the Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) and the National Insurance (NI) Number allocation for Milton Keynes. These are not totally accurate due to no way of tracking new immigrants ie whether they stay in the City or return to their countries of origin. In addition, this data is based on workplace postcode as opposed to residence postcode. The WRS data did show however, that between May 2004 and June 2006, there were 1479 first applications approved and of these, almost 69% were from Polish nationals.


1.7 As part of this strategy, representatives from a number of key BME communities were contacted to elicit their views about sport in the City and the issues that their communities faced. These were

• Milton Keynes Racial Equality Council

• MK Hindu Association

• Chinese Community

• The Asian Women’s Network

• The Polish community Milton Keynes Racial Equality Council

1.8 A meeting was held with Navrita Atwal, the Director, to identify key contacts in the BME communities across Milton Keynes. The main objectives of the Council are to

• Work towards the elimination of racial discrimination.

• Promote equality of opportunity, and good relations, between persons of different racial groups.

1.9 The brief for MKREC is vast primarily focusing on issues of race equality law, harassment and diversity and cultural awareness training. As with any voluntary organisation of this type, its resources are stretched and are heavily reliant on volunteers in the community. There is great potential for MKREC to work more closely with sports development identifying specific issues around sport and voluntary sports sector clubs. MK Hindu Association

1.10 Issues that came out of a meeting with the MK Hindu Association were

• Facilities for playing cricket at Great Linford were becoming harder with difficulties in parking, vandalism, lack of adequate changing and dog excrement on the outfields.

• Indoor training costs for cricket were becoming prohibitive for clubs

• Booking of outdoor facilities at Stantonbury were also becoming prohibitive due to costs and advance booking systems

• There is a desperate need for specific affordable Asian women swimming sessions

• Need support for training new leaders and coaches who can work in the community

1.11 On the more positive side, there is a very successful football project linked to sports development and the MK Dons which is attracting more young Asian footballers to the programme.


Chinese Community 1.12 Perhaps, one of the most established is that of the Chinese community.

The Milton Keynes Chinese School and Community Centre was established in 1988 and the organisation now holds Chinese language classes as well as cultural activities for the Milton Keynes Community. The Chinese Sunday school has more than 200 students enrolled in its classes.

1.13 In response to the MK Adult Lifestyles Survey in 2007, The Chinese community was shown to be one of the most physically active ethnic groups with 15% of respondents stating that they undertook some form of physical activity at least 5 times a week with 50% stating that they were physically active at least once or twice a week.

1.14 A short survey was conducted through the community which showed

• Affordable sports facilities are difficult to find and sports halls want to increase prices every year despite our club trying to provide affordable sports to the wider community including children.

• Tennis for young kids should be cheaper and for indoors for winter

• Sometimes it is difficult to book a venue 1.15 The most common sports undertaken by survey respondees were

badminton, table tennis and basketball. Asian Women’s Network

1.16 The Network offers support and social activities for Asian women and their families in Milton Keynes. They organise social and cultural events where the whole family is involved and also Swimming, Health and Wellbeing Sessions for women.

1.17 In meeting with them the following were identified as particular issues that were causing concern:

• A successful swimming programme ceased due to funding being withdrawn due to need for sustainability. They would like to reinstate it but do not have the funding available to support it

• There is a lack of qualified women able to staff activity sessions for the network

• They would like to have swimming on Sundays but are unable to find staff to support those events

• Bletchley pool was found to be too large and the women preferring a smaller, more intimate pool such as Bourton Mill.

• The Bletchley sports sessions were attracting 800 women over a 12 session programme but needed this to be more frequent to establish regular activity patterns.


1.18 The network has been very successful in attracting women from traditionally hard to reach groups such as the Somali population, Arabs and Pakistani groups. The Polish community

1.19 Whilst the Polish community in Milton Keynes is still fairly new and does not appear to have a community base as such, there is nevertheless, a successful internet based Polish Forum. .This covers a wide range of topics designed to help polish people contact each other as well as be able to seek information about jobs, housing, shopping and a host of other issue they may encounter.

1.20 Through the support of the Forum administrator, a questionnaire was posted on the Forum website (www.mkforum.org.uk). Responses received identified the following issues: • Cost of taking part and childcare issues were prohibitive • Sports participated in included basketball, football, table tennis,

archery, badminton, running, swimming, weight training, • Membership of clubs (esp fitness centres) put people off particularly

where costs had to be paid up front. • Costs at David Lloyd’s centre were prohibitive • Lack of fitness facilities in MK west of the A5). • Don’t like membership schemes • Need for local facilities in each area eg basketball/tennis courts • Difficulty re transport ie getting to clubs/facilities

1.21 Other issues that were raised included:

• Some were members of clubs eg Shenley and Loughton Toxophilists, LA Fitness, Virgin Active but in the main, tended to do sport on a recreation level or where there wasn’t a need for regular commitment.

• Elsewhere on the site, there were adverts/notices about doing korfball, volleyball, squash, badminton, seeking a handball club.

• There appeared to be a lack of knowledge about where to find information on facilities as a number cited a lack of swimming facilities for the more serious swimmer ie lane swimming as opposed to leisure pools.

1.22 The MK Forum appears to be a useful resource in getting to one section of the MK community. It would therefore be worth looking at regarding future advertising of events, facilities and general information and signposting to other information sites.

http://www.mkforum.org.uk/

Appendix E

UK Coaching Framework

The UK Coaching Framework was launched in April 2008 as the process by which sports coaching in the UK will become a world leader by 2016. The vision is to: “Create a cohesive, ethical, inclusive and valued coaching system where skilled coaches support children, players and athletes at all stages of their development in sport.” The Framework contains five Strategic Action Areas supported by 12 Specific Actions. These are shown in table * Whilst the actual delivery of the Framework will take a number of years, some elements are being worked on at present. One of the key elements is the development of the coaching pathway.

Development of participants

Development of performers

Sustaining participants

Sustaining performers

LearningAnd

Relearning

High Performers

Talent ID

Active Start

Fundamentals

Learning to play and practice

Coaching Pathway There is a strong recognition that there is a need to develop a different set of skills for coaches working with different groups. With this in mind the 4x4 model has been produced. Within this model there are 4 strands of coaching expertise as can be seen in the figure below. The model allows specific expertise to be developed in the specific areas, but also to cross over between the strands at what ever level is deemed appropriate


Children’s Coach

ParticipationCoach

Performance Coach

High PerfCoach

Master Coach

Senior Coach

Coach

Assistant Coach


Strategic Action Specific Action Details The UK Coaching System The UK Coaching Model Develop a Coaching Model to provide clear

direction and a strategic framework for coaching policy and practice in the UK

Participant pathways Set and implement a clear comprehensive and inclusive model for the long term development of sports participants across the UK

Coach pathways Set out and implement a clear comprehensive and inclusive model for the long term development of coaches in the UK

Coaching strategies Set out and implement sport specific coaching strategies at UK National regional and local levels

Front-line coaching Active, skilled and qualified coaches Recruit and retain qualified coaches with the skills to coach inclusively at each phase of the participant pathway

Coaching in education Maximise the role of coaching in the education sector

Support for coaches Coaching support and system delivery Establish effective education delivery systems and resources supporting the development of coaches and the coach education workforce in the context of the UK Coaching Certificate and effective CPD programmes



Strategic Action Specific Action Details Targeted development of coaches establish appropriate systems to identify, train

qualify and support quality coaches for specific sports populations. This should commence with coaches of high performance athletes, talent identified athletes, children and coaches of disabled people

Coaching qualifications and continuous professional development (CPD)

Develop coaching qualifications, CPD and specialist qualifications linked to the pathway phase/target group/disability. Commence with inclusive coaching of primary aged children

A professionally regulated vocation

Licensing and registration Set out and implement the steps needed to establish coaching as a professionally regulated vocation recognising volunteer and part/full time roles. As a first step conduct a detailed feasibility study on the licensing and regulation of coaches

Profile and recognition of coaching Conduct a sustained long-term campaign to raise the profile and recognition of coaches at all levels

Research and development Research and development Implement an ongoing research and development programme into participant and coach pathways, coaching quality and expertise and coaching interventions, programmes and resources

Appendix F

Bucks Coaching Agency Bucks Sport is establishing an innovative new Coach Agency as a mechanism to achieving its aims, wider social goals, as well as meeting an identified need by its partners, increasing demand for sports coaching services, sustaining ‘Community sports coach scheme’ posts and as a step towards making itself a sustainable social enterprise. The Coach Agency will create a career structure for coaches, provide high quality coaching and help increase participation in sport. The Agency will create a step change in the provision of coaching through the recruitment, employment and deployment of high quality sports coaches. The Agency is a key element of our London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Legacy programme, with funding secured from Sport England over three years to develop the Agency under a social enterprise model.


rts

e a high profile, positive quality assured, LEA support, not-for-profit

h Quality, professional and dedicated sports

ufficient business to maintain contracted coaches by the end

out the

t and help in developing the partnership through new links and partnerships.

Mission Statement To create a sustainable social enterprise that ensures the provision of sufficient, reliable, quality assured, appropriately qualified, experienced and skilled coaches to meet demand across Buckinghamshire. Core Objectives:

To ensure the buy-in and support, both financially and strategic, by all local and regional stakeholders in particular Sport England, Skills Active, SportsCoach UK, the 2 LEA’s / Childrens Trusts, Local Authorities, School Spo

Coach Agency

Employment & Deployment

of Quality assured

coaches

Coaches

Many employers / self employed.

Casual contracts

Not supported, recognised, Poor

CPD

No career structure / pathway

Coach Employers

Require flexible workforce –

casual labour, part time,

seasonal & peak hours,

various skills.

Lack time for recruitment,

management, monitoring, support & training

Partnerships and Sports Governing Bodies. To providproduct. To recruit and retain Higcoaches to the agency. To generate sof year one. To generate sufficient business to contribute a surplus to administrative/management costs by the end of year Two. To establish a social enterprise business that can operate withrequirement for subsidy or grant aid by the end of year three To raise the profile of the Bucks spor


will

sed to cross subsidise activities within the agency (eg the provision of ork.

he model seeks to meet identified needs on the part of both coach mployers and coaches:

The business will operate as a ‘not for profit’ social enterprise, where coaching providers will purchase the services of coaches, paying an additional management fee on top of the cost of the coach. The Agencyseek to generate surpluses which are re-invested into Bucks Sport and / or ucoaching to low income groups) or in other aspects of the Partnership’s w Te


Appendix G

Benefits of being a Community Amateur Sports Club

es this important role by distinguishing between clubs and

businesses for rates and tax purposes, ensuring money is kept in sports

Both property and non-property owning clubs can significantly benefit

registered at

lso exempt for CASCs if

• CASCs whose income does not exceed these thresholds will no longer

this only benefits facility owning clubs, non-facility owning clubs can still significantly benefit from Gift Aid

Sports clubs play a valuable role in their communities. The CASC schemerecognis

clubs.

from the scheme. The key benefits of casc registration include:

• 80% mandatory business rate relief. Local authorities can offer up to100% relief to clubs at their discretion.

• The ability to raise funds from individuals under Gift Aid. ACASC can reclaim up to £28 in tax for every £100 donated, thoughthe moment this does not apply to all types of donations.

• CASCs are exempt from Corporation Tax on profits derived from trading activities if their trading income is under £30,000 pa.

• Profits derived from property income are agross property income is under £20,000 pa, of particular relevance following the abolition of the nil rate band.

be required to complete an annual Corporation Tax return.

Relief on business rates alone are estimated by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to be worth £2,000 per year. Whilst

and exemption from Corporation Tax.


Appendix H

“This is a City that thinks differently, embrchange”

009)

is

Forty years ago the city did not exist. Now it is home to

cess that it has, it must continue to be a o

number of key visions which will It describes an area that will:

h soul, energy and dynamism.

out new methods.

be an international city with a global reputation for its people’s

e

Cars racing through the City centre to

stics g to name a few. It is also a place that has a proud

velop its own unique culture and heritage which has built upon

The Vision aces evolution and champions

(Source – Milton Keynes Council Plan 2006 – 2

1.23 This is the headline of the vision within the Milton Keynes CorporateStrategy 2005 – 2008. There can be no doubt that Milton Keynesdifferent. some 220,000 people. It is the fastest growing urban area in the country.

1.24 In order to achieve the sucvisionary city which is prepared to take on challenges in a way that nother community can do.

1.25 The Corporate Strategy outlines a continue to drive this success.

• continue to be unique.

• develop a centre wit

• celebrate diversity

• be at ease with change and evolution

• be known for its readiness to try

• consist of active communities,

• innovation and talent.

• be spoken of highly, and admired for leading the way cities will brun in the future.

1.26 Where else could you find some where that within six weeks and oneday hosted seven British Touringa packed audience of 15,000 people? People quickly discover that Milton Keynes is a “can do city”.

1.27 Milton Keynes is a place of innovation; it is a place that can engage people in different ways. It is a place that produces world class athletes in diverse sports such as snowboarding, athletics, gymnaand swimminheritage of mass participation events using the parks, lakes and countryside.

1.28 Most cities have generations of the same family living in the area, butno-one over the age of 40 has lived in the City of Milton Keynes all their lives. The city simply did not exist 40 years ago. Milton Keynes has had to de


ndaries lturally. It is this unique environment which

the

en is

4 clubs and Milton

ts

city is expected to double. As a result, over the next

at . Engaging people brings massive benefits to the

mmunity cohesion and

trategy 2003 -2008 was reviewed in 2004 and

2.2

nt

• The development of a range of new sports facilities across the city particularly in the new growth areas

the diverse backgrounds from which its people came and continue to come.

1.29 It is a multicultural area which is constantly redefining its bouboth geographically and cuwill encourage young people to push their boundaries both competitively and socially.

1.30 Milton Keynes has always seen itself as a place of sport. From the earliest days the sporting infrastructure has been built into the overall design. As a result the area has a myriad of facilities to choose from. These vary from local community centres which may offer a single badminton court, to high level centres of excellence which includeNational Badminton Centre and the new Milton Keynes Dons Football Club Stadium which can accommodate up to 30,000 spectators.

1.31 The range of sports available is diverse with over 400 different sports clubs. Dragon boating is seen alongside wakeboarding, tai chi alongside goalball, football alongside archery. These clubs play at a wide variety of leisure centres, pitches and specialist buildings across the City and surrounding towns and villages many of which have bepurpose built. These include the Kingston Gymnastics Centre whichthe largest centre of its type in the South East of England, Milton Keynes Table Tennis Centre which is home to 1Keynes Sports Club which accommodates many sports clubs and boasts two water-based synthetic turf pitches.

1.32 However as the city continues to grow, the desire to see more sporfacilities and opportunity similarly grows. Over the last 40 years the cityhas grown from 40,000 people to 220,000. By 2011 this will have increased by almost 30,000 people. Between 2004 and 2025 the population of thefew years, Milton Keynes will see massive investment in its facility infrastructure.

1.33 Investment however is not just about facilities it is about the people thuse those facilitieswhole community in terms of better health, copride in the area.

2 Previous Successes and Targets 2.1 The previous Sports S

identified a number of significant successes and directions for the future. These have included

• The establishment of the AMKERS Project developed in partnership with the Primary Care Trust

• The development of the new Dons Stadium and the partnershipwith the Dons around football developme


• The growing development of an ‘extreme’ sports culture and the partnerships established

• The success of community events such as the ‘Sport Relief’ mile

• A number of venues being identified in the south east Pre-Games training camp guide for the 2012 Olympics

2.3 These successes have been tempered with a lack of qualitative data and monitoring procedures which have made it difficult to accurately identify where the key successes in sports development have been, despite the service receiving Quest Accreditation.

2.4 There is no doubt that sport features highly across the city and surrounding areas with a number of strong community programmes such as Football First and the work undertaken by MK Lions in basketball. Cricket and athletics have also featured highly with new Community Sports Coaches working in schools and across the City. The need to constantly chase resources has left an overall impression of a scatter gun approach without a clear coordinated programme, utilising available resources and a clear partnership approach.

3 Taking Sport in Milton Keynes forwards 3.1 The previous Sports Strategy (2003 – 2008) had a vision which was

“To offer a broad, balanced and quality Physical Education curriculum within schools. To create sustainable sporting opportunities and pathways for all. To develop and support talented individuals in the pursuit of their sporting goals. To promote the social, economic, health and well-being benefits of physical activity to the whole community of Milton Keynes.”

3.2 This was based on five themes which were:

• Sport in Education

• Sport in the Community

• Sporting Excellence

• Health and Well-being

• Partnerships within Sport 3.3 Whilst the content of the previous vision is still relevant, to take sport

forward in Milton Keynes the new vision must be short and succinct but inspire a new generation of providers and residents to invest in and take up sport and physical activity. Taking the overall corporate vision as shown above, the new vision for sport and physical activity should be

“To inspire all people in Milton Keynes to be actively involved in sport, physical activity and physical education at a level of their choice; to create a healthy and contented


society which is supported by a robust sporting framework that encourages sustainability, growth and innovation”

Issue – Is the vision the correct vision for the development of sport in Milton Keynes until 2013? 3.4 This strategy sets out that vision for the way people can be engaged in

sport and physical activity for the years to come based on the following five themes:

• Developing a robust sporting infrastructure

• Developing high quality physical education and school sport

• Developing Clubs and Volunteers

• Inspiring participation and excellence

• Becoming more aware and better informed

4 Developing a robust sporting infrastructure 4.1 The provision of sport in any area is always complex. In Milton Keynes

this is no different with a wide variety of agencies all providing a service to the locality. This network includes

• Direct providers of facilities within the public, private and voluntary sectors

• Agencies supporting sport including voluntary and public sector organisations

• Local authorities

• Education 4.2 The chart below shows that there are a myriad of organisations that

provide sport in the locality but not necessarily always in a coordinated fashion. All of these organisations operate within their own networks; have their own agendas, but all play a vital part in the provision of sport within Milton Keynes

4.3 The important issue is to ensure that all of these agencies work together in a collective way to improve sport. All too often sport has operated in a fragmented way, with certain “big players” taking the lead in determining policy to the exclusion of the smaller ones. Many of the smaller providers, particularly clubs do not have the time or the inclination to work in the wider agenda, and to some extent they can not be blamed for this. However, they do need to have a voice and be able to feel that that voice is being heard.

4.4 Some of the key providers are highlighted below.


Bucks and Milton Keynes Sports Partnership The Sports Partnership is one of 49 County Sports Partnerships established nationally that form a key part of the delivery system for sport across England.

Figure 1 – Current Structure of sport in Milton Keynes



4.5 Their vision is for “An active and successful sporting county, where everyone is more active and healthy and enjoys the benefits of sport, improve their lives through sport and achieve success at whatever level through their involvement.”

4.6 The partnership is aiming to create a system whereby all agencies involved in sport can work together more effectively to

“Widen access, increase participation, create clear pathways and improve levels of performance in sport and physical activity.”

4.7 The Bucks Sport Strategic Framework is attached at Appendix 1. It clearly outlines the need to work with local authorities; school sports partnerships and District Sports Networks.

4.8 There have been difficulties in determining the position of Milton Keynes within the Partnership. Historically there has always been tension in the relationship between Milton Keynes and the rest of Buckinghamshire. With the advent of the County Sports Partnerships, due to their alignment with County Council boundaries, Milton Keynes, despite being a Unitary Authority, was placed with Buckinghamshire. However the feeling is that they would prefer to be a Sports Partnership in their own right. It is very unlikely that Sport England would allow a geographical area as small as Milton Keynes to become a Sports Partnership, despite these historical difficulties. This has created tensions which need to be resolved by closer partnership working.

Issue –Does the position of Milton Keynes within the Sports Partnership need to be resolved? Milton Keynes Council 4.9 Local authorities have traditionally been the main providers of sport

through the funding and management of sports facilities, support for local clubs, the provision of local holiday programmes for young people and outreach sports development work.

4.10 Over the years, as other providers such as the Sports Partnerships and the private sector have come on board, that role has changed to one of a more enabling function i.e. working in partnership with others to help them become more self supporting and direct providers themselves.

4.11 The Council has a very successful Sports Development Team, (Quest accredited) which as the drive to make Milton Keynes a “Sporting City” gathers momentum, is coming under more and more pressure to deliver. The structure of the team is shown in Appendix 2. The range of programmes that it directly leads on or is involved with on a partnership basis is large. It covers work in all three areas of sports specific development, event organisation, physical education and physical activity initiatives.

4.12 Whilst this delivery is impressive, it also generates its own problems and the pressure that the sports development team is under will only increase as the City attracts more national and international events. In addition, the new Sport England Strategy is likely to move away from


participation and the active recreation and healthy lifestyles agenda towards a world class community sport system. Whilst the details of this are still to be confirmed, it is likely to have an impact on future funding streams and their allocation.

4.13 The headline figures for participation from the Active People survey were disappointing with Milton Keynes falling below the national average. One of the key aims of the Council’s Service Plan for sports development is for an improvement in the numbers of people achieving the figure of 3 x 30mins of physical activity per week and an increase in the number of people volunteering. The Plan also recognises that:

“A greater emphasis will have to be placed on partners to support this agenda as there are not enough resources at present within the Sports Development team to drive a change in participation and volunteering.”

Issue: Is the existing Council sports development structure under resourced? Issue: Is the focus for sports development in the correct areas? The Milton Keynes Sport and Physical Activity Alliance 4.14 The Sport and Physical Activity Alliance is the newly established

Community Sports Network for Milton Keynes. Its current membership is shown in Appendix 3. It has been created to act as an interface at a local level between the Bucks and Milton Keynes Sports Partnership and sport in the local area.

4.15 It should have a strategic role in Milton Keynes. Its remit currently is “to act as a strategic partnership for sport and physical activity within Milton Keynes and consequently equip the sports and physical activity community with the means of responding to the evolving policy environment, providing the best possible provision for the Milton Keynes community.”

4.16 Sport MK for many years has been the voice of the voluntary sports club in Milton Keynes. It currently has a membership of around 80 sports clubs. It is also a member of the Sport and Physical Activity Alliance. In the past it has run promotional events such as “come and try it” days, as well as taking over Middleton Hall to allow clubs to showcase themselves to a new audience. It also organises the Sports Achiever of the Year celebrations which highlight the excellence that sport can demonstrate at all levels. This is a big event which takes enormous organisation

4.17 Sport MK also provides a vital flow of funds to clubs on behalf of the Hockey Foundation Trust and the Community Foundation. These take the form of bursaries to talented athletes; start up grants, coaching awards and so on.

4.18 CSNs are relatively new organizations. Initial findings show that many of the most successful CSNs are those that were based on the old Local Sports Councils which have evolved to take on the wider remit of a CSN. This is based upon local and strategic connections, partnerships and the recognition of the local community.


4.19 With the current structure there have been some difficulties in creating separation between the two organisations, and it has to be questioned as to whether there is actually a need for both. One solution would be to merge the two, and create a single entity

4.20 The community consultation identified that, and it was reinforced in subsequent discussions, there was a need to create a “Champion for Sport”. This person is key to the development and growth of sport in Milton Keynes. They would become the person who in effect would be the voice of sport, not a specific sport, able to inspire people, have a vision, and have drive and energy to unite all the voices of sport as one.

Issue – Should MKSPAA remain as the overarching body for sport in Milton Keynes or should MK Sport and MKSPAA merge to take on the role? Issue – Do MK Sport and MKSPAA both have a profile within the community? Issue – How can the links between clubs and other strategic bodies such as health, crime prevention etc be best developed? Issue – Is there a need for a champion for sport in Milton Keynes? Sports Clubs

• It is estimated that there are around 400 sports clubs in the Milton Keynes area. The vast majority of these depend on volunteers for their existence. Volunteers give up their time and energy for their sport. That is often all they wish to do, and do not see the wider agenda as relevant to them. What is important to them is improving their sport, and their club. The club survey carried out showed that many had problems relating to lack of volunteers, coaches as well as issues around facilities. Details of the club survey are shown in ……[cross reference with generic document]…..

The Private Sector 4.21 Private sector sports provision has been a major growth area across

the country with the advent of fitness gyms such as Fitness First, Virgin Active, Esporta etc. Milton Keynes is well provided with private managed sports clubs. Others include Xscape (SnoZone), David Lloyd, Planet Ice and Whitecap Leisure.

4.22 The feedback from surveys undertaken, especially with the BME community and in particular, from some of the new ethnic communities in the city is that the commitment to membership of these facilities is off putting, particularly where it involves up front payments and therefore a certain degree of forward planning. In addition, the costs themselves are prohibitive to many sectors of the community in general.

Issue – Can the private sector effectively contribute to increasing sports participation at an affordable rate? Leisure Trusts 4.23 There are a number of Leisure Trusts in Milton Keynes which manage

the variety of sports and leisure centres found around the City. These include


• Hertsmere

• Leisure Connections

• Shenley

• Woughton

• Wolverton and Watling Way Pools Trust 4.24 Each of the Trusts has been established at different times and on

different contracts and specifications. This variety has led to a number of problems around funding, pricing policies and lack of coordination across the city.

Issue – Is there a lack of coordination across the Leisure Trusts leading to problems with pricing, monitoring and programme development?

5 Inspiring Participation and Excellence “There are few public health initiatives that have greater potential for improving

health and well being than increasing the activity levels of the population of England"

Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, 2004

5.1 In 2006 Sport England undertook the Active People Survey which measured how many people were meeting the Government target of 3 periods of 30minutes of physical activity three times a week. Nationally the level was 21%. Milton Keynes fell just below the national average at 20.5%.

5.2 In order to meet the Government target within Milton Keynes, it would mean attracting another 1750 people into activity over a three year period. The challenge is greater in certain areas of the city where the participation levels are significantly lower than average (figure 2)

How does Milton Keynes encourage almost 2000 people to achieve the 3x30 and physical activity? 5.3 The household survey that was undertaken as part of this project

indicates a much higher level of participation with 28.6% of the population stating that they participate in sport at least 3 times a week.

5.4 Encouragingly, many people who did not meet the 3 times a week threshold were keen to do so indicating that there is to some extent a ready market of people wanting to become more active. For these people cost of accessing facilities was a major issue (34%) with lack of time (33%) and the time facilities were open (19%) also being a barrier.

Figure 2 – Participation rates in Milton Keynes (Sport England – Active

People) 5.5 Clues to some of the reasons for non participation were also contained

within the survey. 45% of respondents stated that work or family commitments were a major barrier to participation. It is known that the UK has the longest working hours in Europe and there appears to be an increasing trend of people taking second jobs in order to make ends meet. Clearly this is going to impact on participation patterns.

5.6 The MK Adults Lifestyles Survey conducted in 2007 came up with 3 key recommendations which were:

• The need to target activities at older age groups to encourage those not participating in any activity do so to improve stability, balance and reduce the chances of a fall.

• The need to improve the perception of safety on the Redway network to encourage greater use through social marketing.

• The need for leisure providers to offer reduced admission charges to younger people and offer a buddy system to encourage more people to use the facilities.

Issue – Is there a need to target at activities at older people Issue – Is there a need to target cycling as a means of getting the population of Milton Keynes more active? Nortoft Partnerships Ltd Milton Keynes Page 25 of 42 Sports Development, Leisure Facilities & Playing Pitch Strategy Appendices: Sports Development October 2008


Issue – Does pricing remain a major barrier to participation? Sport in the Work Place 5.7 Milton Keynes is regarded as the most successful of the 'New Towns'

built since the war. It is estimated that commercially it creates around 5,000 new jobs a year. As a result, there has been a continued growth in the number of workplaces in Milton Keynes, which is estimated to be around 9,900. This equates to a growth of 13.5% in Milton Keynes, which compares favourably with the England and Wales total of 5.3% and that South East total of 6.4%.

5.8 Currently there are 7,500 employment establishments. 78.5% are in the service sector, 11.9% in the production sector with 16.1% employed in the production sector. Over 500 of these are overseas owned companies in Milton Keynes, representing 8% of the total companies in Milton Keynes and 19% employment. It is not known how many of these companies have established work based health programmes or subsidise their employees’ memberships to fitness gyms.

• As part of Dame Carol Black’s review for the Department of Health and Department for Work and Pensions, “Working for a Healthier Tomorrow”, PricewaterhouseCoopers were asked to look at the wider business case and particularly the economic case for employers to invest in wellness programmes for their staff. They found compelling evidence from existing literature and case studies that health and well-being programmes have a positive impact on a wide range of benefits including

• Reduced sickness absence

• Reduced staff turn over

• Reduced accidents and injuries

• Increase employee satisfaction

• Higher productivity

• A higher company profile 5.9 Previous research by the Physical Activity Task Force in 2003 identified

that physically active employees take 27% fewer days of sick leave, which equates to over 2 days improved attendance and a saving of £135 per employee. The British Heart Foundation says that

“Employees are more likely to make changes to their lifestyle if they are aware of the benefits they will experience from being active, and if they know what activities are available and where they can be active.”

Issue - Should Milton Keynes explore a workplace activity Programme? Everyday Sport 5.10 The Everyday Activity Project in Milton Keynes is a local response to

the Everyday Sport campaign by Sport England. It is a joint initiative


between Milton Keynes Council sports development, The Parks Trust and the Primary Care Trust and funded through LPSA2 and the Community investment Fund.

• The project employs an Everyday Activity Coordinator whose role is to:

“develop a programme of 'Everyday Activities' including health walks, bike rides and other park/community based activities with the aim of getting the population of Milton Keynes, especially those who are sedentary, more active.”

• Other activities include Pilates, Tai-Chi, Buggy Fit classes and Walk Leader training. Korfball has recently been added to the list.

• The programme also runs a range of “Return to Sport” courses aimed at those people who for whatever reason, have dropped out of a sport at some stage and want to now return, as well as those who simply want to take up a new sport in an informal and friendly environment. Current courses include netball, squash and water sports.

Issue - Should Milton Keynes be promoting everyday activities? Activity Referral Schemes 5.11 There are two activity referral programmes in operation in Milton

Keynes designed to get both adults and children more physically active. The Active MK Exercise Referral Scheme (AMKERS) was established in April 2004 after significant joint planning between Milton Keynes Primary Care Trust (MKPCT), Milton Keynes Council, and local leisure centre providers. It received over 1,000 referrals between 2004 and 2007. The other is the Children’s Activity Referral Scheme (CARS) which is run by Milton Keynes Primary Care Trust in partnership with Milton Keynes Sports Development. The programme is for any child or young person aged between 5 and 16, (school years 1 to 11) that would benefit from being more physical active.

5.12 The AMKER scheme has been carefully monitored and evaluated over this period with a number of key recommendations emanating from the December 2007 report. These have included:

• Consideration should be made to extending either the AMKER scheme or CARS to provide a referral pathway for young persons aged 17 years.

• Expansion of the scheme to include other exercise activities should be encouraged.

• All AMKER scheme exercise providers should be signed up to the Milton Keynes “Passport for Leisure” scheme.

Issue – Should Milton Keynes continue with the promotion of Exercise Referral schemes in line with AMKERS and CARS? Equity in Sport 5.13 Sports equity is about:


“fairness in sport, equality of access, recognising inequalities and taking steps to address them. It is about changing the culture and structure of sport to ensure that it becomes equally accessible to everyone in society. “

Definition from Making English Sport Inclusive: Equity Guidelines for Governing Bodies, Sport

England (200)

5.14 It has long been recognised that there are certain sections of the community that find it harder to access sport, and need extra assistance to encourage them to become active. These groups include

• Black and Ethnic Minorities

• Disabled People

• Women and Girls

• Older People

• People on low incomes or who are socially excluded for other reasons

5.15 Milton Keynes has seen a growth in its multi cultural composition, which has been enhanced in the last few years by an influx of workers and new immigrants from the old eastern block countries such as Poland, Slovakia and the Baltic States. In 2006 the BME population of Milton Keynes was estimated to be around 17%, schools saw a rise in the number of pupils from ethnic minorities of 2% between 2006 and 2007

5.16 Each community has different needs and issues. To ensure that these can be addressed in this strategy, representatives from a number of these communities were contacted to elicit their views about sport. Background information and details of the consultation can be found in Appendix 4.

5.17 The key issues that emerged were around the development of partnerships, the affordability of sports facilities, assistance required to develop programmes for specific needs especially amongst women from certain communities and the dissemination of information.

Issue – Is there a need for a closer partnership between the Racial Equality Council, MKSPAA and sports development to target the hard to reach sectors of the BME community? Issue - Is there a need for more qualified women to develop activity programmes across the City for women? Issue: How can the cost of cost of facilities and transport be reduced? Issue: How can more information on clubs in the City be disseminated amongst all communities? 5.18 Disabled people who want to participate in sport can find a growing

amount of provision in the city. Include data about numbers of disabled people in MK. A range of activities and clubs can be found on the MK Web but it is not clear how many people know this information exists. More recently Bucks and MK Sport have developed a county wide disability sports club directory, but the bulk of the activity is focussed


around Stoke Mandeville and little provision within the Milton Keynes area.

5.19 Information from the national governing bodies of sport identified that whilst boccia and goalball were played in the City, further developments were hampered by a lack of resources in terms of staffing and funding.

5.20 As part of the Football First programme, there are a number of opportunities available, based in clubs for people across the whole spectrum of disabilities. Over and above this however, the provision is patchy without a coordinated structure of support at any level. There is a need for a stronger voice for disability sport in any decision making process within the City.

Issue: Does Disability sport need to have more representation on key fora which are making decisions about sport in the city. Issue: Is a complete review of disability sport required to ascertain future levels of support that are needed to help develop a more coherent structure? 5.21 The city has four Day Centres for adults with learning disabilities. They

deliver a wide range of activities including swimming, football, outdoor activities, boccia, archery and goalball as part of their implementation of the Government White Paper “Valuing People” part of which aims to ensure that service users have a sporting and healthy lifestyle. The Day Centres are encountering a range of difficulties in delivering this programme which include:

• A need for activities for profound and multiple disabilities

• A need for more volunteers – especially trained in sport or with a sports background.

• There is a need for better information distribution– i.e. the centres need information from clubs /MK etc on what’s going on and how things can be accessed

• Availability of facilities doesn’t always fit in with centre timescales e.g. day time sports hall use

• The Centres need to fund raise a lot to subsidise activities

• They currently have no links with the Specialist Sports Colleges about developing new opportunities or accessing facilities

• Would like to do more water based activities but affordable opportunities are limited

Issue - Should the profile of disability sport be significantly raised with more support at a community level provided to enable people to participate in sport? 5.22 In 2004, the Milton Keynes population over 60 years was 31,200, but

this is expected to significantly rise by 35% to 42,005 by 2011. The Active Lifestyles Survey suggests that if there is a desire to ensure that the population of Milton Keynes develops an active lifestyle, and that demands on health and care services should be reduced, there needs


to be a rethink in the way that sport and/or physical activity is delivered for older people.

5.23 In discussions with the Community Development Officer for Age Concern, her view was that

“Local, affordable exercise opportunities are vital for older people, especially for those without access to a car. There is the demand: I have examples of local older people's groups asking for armchair exercise, gentle yoga etc. at their meetings but they cannot afford to pay the going rate for instructors”.

5.24 Existing sports groups for older people have also told Age Concern MK that they need better publicity. General promotion of sport and activity targeted at older people is also needed. The advice was that “Gentle exercise” might be a better term than sport when targeting older people who are frailer or less fit.

Issue – Is there a need for local development work with older people to ensure that they have the opportunity to access sports opportunities? Issue – Should additional resources be identified to provide a service for older people across the city that is coordinated and sustainable? Passport to Leisure 5.25 The Passport to Leisure Scheme was developed to provide discounted

access for Milton Keynes residents to sports facilities. Those eligible for the scheme are people in receipt of various benefits such as Council Tax Benefit, Disability Living Allowance and Housing Benefit to name a few as well as full time students and people over 60 and not in employment.

5.26 The Passport can be used in a range of centres across the City as well as SnoZone, Emberton Country Park, programmes run by sports development and a number of sports clubs such as MK Lions and the MK Dons Education and Sports Trust. There are however still gaps in provision, primarily in the private sector areas such as David Lloyd and Whitecap Leisure. In addition the Outdoor centre at Caldecotte should be added to the portfolio.

5.27 The Scheme also has problems in its promotion. In a recent Household Survey conducted as part of this research, 87.5% of those questioned had not heard of the Passport to Leisure Scheme and 65.6% said that they were not holders of the card.

5.28 There could be a number of reasons for the above lack of knowledge or perceived lack of knowledge:

• People did not want to admit that they were in receipt of benefits

• The scheme was not being publicised widely enough

• The difficulty of being able to obtain the card from a limited number of venues at limited times

Issue – Do you agree with these reasons or are there other contributing factors?


Issue – Should the scheme be more widely promoted across the City? Excellence 5.29 The development of high performance sport and the necessary support

services has not traditionally been seen as part of a local authority’s remit. This tends to now sit within the work that the County Sports Partnerships are undertaking and within the governing body of sport sector.

5.30 As part of the Bucks Sport Vision for the London 2012 Legacy, Bucks Sport has developed a Talent Passport Scheme. This provides athletes who are part of a national team or squad or are listed in the top 10 of any national age group, free access to a number of sporting facilities in Buckinghamshire at off peak times for personal training and development.

5.31 As part of that work, the views of a number of talented athletes were sought with regards to their specific requirements. Discounted access to physiotherapy and sports science were areas that featured highly. A partnership has been set up with a number of local physiotherapy clinics willing to provide Talent Passport holders with discounted treatment. Only one of the clinics featured is in the Milton Keynes area. There is therefore an opportunity to work with other physiotherapist clinics and medical facilities in Milton Keynes to ensure that they buy into the Passport Scheme and provide services to the City’s talented performers.

5.32 Providing support services for talented and established sports people should be a key element of the whole sports provision programme in Milton Keynes. It is important to be part of the Bucks Sport programme and ensure that Milton Keynes athletes are receiving the full benefits from the programmes. However, many of these services, particularly sports medicine provision need to be accessed locally and both Milton Keynes Council and MKSPAA have a role to play.

5.33 Being talented or a high performer is not just about being young. Older athletes competing at a masters level in their sport also need to be recognised and supported in an appropriate way.

Issue – Does further research needs to be undertaken on the performance and elite sport structures that exist in Milton Keynes and where sports can access the required support services.

6 Becoming more aware and better informed 6.1 Throughout the consultation phase of this strategy one of the key

messages that emerged was a difficulty with finding information about what sport is available and where. There is a vast array of information in the public domain, but it is fragmented spread across documents, leaflets, websites all of which are independently managed and delivered. Examples include COIN, MK Web, Citizen Newspaper, and the Milton Keynes Youth/Sports Club Registration Scheme.


6.2 Whilst the larger sports are reasonably well publicised it was felt that the smaller, minority sports were given far less exposure and were more difficult to find information about, particularly if the internet was not included.

6.3 The general call was for a single co-ordinated point of information which is a portal for information about sport which was able to deliver in a wide variety of media. However the household survey clearly indicated that the means by which they would prefer to receive their information was by post (49.3%), the local paper (48.3%) the internet (24.1%) or by email (22.3%).

6.4 Consultation also showed that people felt that signage for the main leisure facilities across the city was poor. For example it would be very easy to drive past Stantonbury Campus and not realise that there was a major leisure facility located only a few yards from the road.

Issue – Is there a need for a single point of information for sport in MK Issue – Does signage to the main leisure facilities in the area need to be improved?

7 Developing Clubs and Volunteers 7.1 Clubs are the lifeblood of sport in the UK. Without the hours that they

and their volunteers provide, sport would simply stagnate. It is difficult to be precise about the number of clubs that exist within Milton Keynes, but during the process of developing this strategy 388 clubs were identified representing 52 different sports. These clubs were consulted by means of an online survey, details of the results can be found in …cross reference main document……….

7.2 A key thrust of the strategy has to be the development of a strong effective network of good clubs which can provide sporting opportunity for people to take part in sport at all levels in a wide variety of sports. This structure needs to be supported by a strong infrastructure of facilities, coaches and volunteers

7.3 For some clubs there is a resistance to going through the development process. There is an attitude of this is the way we have always done things that prevails. They need to be encouraged to think of themselves as a small business which is operating in an increasingly competitive market. The clubs that develop and take initiatives will continue to grow and thrive.

7.4 The definition of a good club is one that has a clear view about what it is trying to achieve, linked to having the right people, with the right skills to deliver that vision.

Issue – Do you agree with this definition? Issue - Do you think that the thrust of the strategy should be Club Development? 7.5 Clubmark, or the sports own equivalent gives a good starting point as it

guarantees that clubs have in place qualified coaches, child protection checks and procedures, a strong volunteer structure, an identified playing programme with minimum player to coach ratios.


7.6 Within Milton Keynes there are 18 clubs which already have Clubmark and 11 football clubs with Charter Standard. The club questionnaire indicated that there were a further 11 clubs who were currently applying for the award, and another 9 who were interested in obtaining it.

7.7 It is recognised that clubs will need support in accessing courses completing paperwork, understanding requirements and accessing funding.

Issue – Should more support and incentives should be given to enable clubs to obtain Clubmark, or equivalent? 7.8 The lack of security of tenure was an issue for many clubs. For a club

to develop and grow it needs a strong secure home from which to work. Due to the nature of many sports it is not practical for them to have their own facilities, but in today’s financially competitive environment, clubs need to be able to pay their way whilst still remaining affordable for people to become involved in their sport. Clubs need to be encouraged to apply where appropriate for Community Amateur Sports Club Status (CASC) to maximise income through relief on Rates, ability to offset costs through Gift Aid and other financial benefits. More details about CASC can be found in Appendix 7

7.9 Milton Keynes is fortunate to have a wide range of specialist facilities which are only found in a relatively small number of locations. These are however mainly in the domain of the private sector. A conflict however can arise between the commercial pressures of the facility provider and the sports development needs of a club

Issue – Do you think that conflict between commercial pressures and clubs needs to be resolved in order to allow clubs to develop? Volunteers 7.10 The sporting world is becoming more professional in the way it is

managed, but it has to be remembered that sport is run by volunteers, and their time is limited and precious. Clubs need support to develop, and organisations like Sport MK supported by Sports Development will play a key part in assisting clubs to take this route forwards.

7.11 According to the Active People Survey, people in Milton Keynes have lower levels of volunteering than regionally. Clubs rely on a small number of people (13.9%) who put in many hours for their club. Nevertheless, it is estimated that adults in Milton Keynes volunteer for over 1 million hours per year which would equate to over 600 full time roles at a value, if it had to be paid for, of over £6m

7.12 The development of coaches is again critical to the way clubs operate and develop. There is always a need for more coaches. There is a need for a stronger base of coaches who are trained.

7.13 Coaches will obtain their qualification from their Governing Body of Sport. For many sports this is delivered under the United Kingdom Coaching Framework which means that a consistent set of standards is in operation. However there are a number of sports that are not yet engaged with the process which makes this standardisation difficult.


However over time it is anticipated that most sports will be compliant with the Framework.

7.14 Details of the UK Coaching Framework can be found in Appendix 5. 7.15 There are many implications for sport as a result of the new Framework

as coaching becomes more professionalised regardless of whether coaches are paid or not. However the impact on the volunteer coaches is potentially more onerous, as they are required to qualify differently to the current system.

7.16 The cost of coaching qualifications is increasing, and volunteers are reluctant to pay out up to £500 to become qualified. There is a need to ensure that support is given to coaches who coach within clubs in Milton Keynes. Sports Coach UK have identified that a voluntary coach accesses 9 hours per year of CPD. Whilst this is sometimes available through Sport MK, this is only to affiliated clubs. There is a need to ensure that more coaches and clubs are aware of this opportunity. There is a need to raise the profile of Sport MK and to encourage more clubs to become affiliated. At present there are around 80 members from an estimated club total of approaching 400.

Issue – Do incentives need to be put in place to encourage people to become qualified? Issue – clubs need to become more aware of the benefits of becoming affiliated to Sport MK 7.17 There is an increasing bank of people now seeing coaching as a career

pathway. There is still a shortfall of people willing to take this route. There are currently 8 full time and 7 part time Community Sports Coaches operating within Milton Keynes. These have been deployed through funding available from Sport England. Swimming, basketball, cricket, racquet sports, paddlesports, rowing, athletics, gymnastics, dance and football have all benefited from these posts. However, funding was only secured for a 3 year period and many posts are coming to an end of their term. It is not clear how many of these posts will continue long term. The input of these coaches has been well received.

Issue – Should a long term funding strategy for the Community Sports coach programme be established? 7.18 There is also a myriad of other coaches working through the leisure

centres. There is however a shortfall of quality coaches, and due to the fragmented nature of the leisure centre management, it is often difficult to find suitable coaches. This could be remedied by being able to offer sufficient volume of work to potential instructors and coaches thereby allowing them to make this their full time employment rather than an hour here or there.

7.19 The means for delivery could be through the newly established Coaching Agency which was set up through Bucks and MK Sport in January 2008. This would ensure that a more consistent standard of deployment could be offered.


7.20 The agency is aiming to bridge the gap between coaches and organisations such as schools, clubs, voluntary and statutory agencies in order to ensure that they can access high quality coaches. More details can be found in Appendix 6.

Should the Bucks Coaching Agency be promoted as a way of bringing more high quality coaches and instructors in to the area? 7.21 Sports clubs also rely heavily on volunteers to exist. These volunteers

take a wide variety of roles from cutting the grass to managing the books. In the same way that coaches are having to become more professional in the way they operate, the requirements being placed on clubs are also becoming more onerous. The recruitment of clubs is mainly being done in-house from parents and former players. Few clubs are recruiting externally. Discussions with Volunteer MK showed that few sports clubs were accessing their resources yet they were placing up to 700 volunteers a year in Milton Keynes. Clearly sport could benefit from this expertise.

7.22 Volunteer MK is keen to develop stronger links with the sporting sector. One of the ways that this could be delivered is through a volunteering conference, which would allow partnerships to be developed. Ideally this should be combined with Sport MK and the Milton Keynes Sports Development Unit

Issue – Should annual Volunteer in Sport Conference be organised? Issue – Is there a need for a long term volunteer support programme in Milton Keynes?

8 Developing High Quality Physical Education and School Sport

Overview 8.1 In January 2008, the government launched the PE and Sport Strategy

for Young People, which builds on the PE and School Sport Club Links strategy (PESSCL) which was launched in 2003. The new strategy looks to develop a world class system for school sport and physical education. In order to deliver on this, the government has promised to invest an additional £775 million over the next three years, in addition to the £1.5billion that has been invested since 2003.

8.2 In Milton Keynes there are currently 110 schools:

• Secondary schools 14

• Primary Schools 90

• Special Schools 6 8.3 This number is constantly changing with new schools opening as a

result of the population growth particularly in the city. 8.4 The delivery of physical education is delivered by schools against the

National Curriculum, but assisted by a network of Partnership Development Managers, Schools Sports Co-ordinators, and coaches.


As part of the new LAA, Milton Keynes will be judged against two key indicators, one of which relates to the provision of high quality sport and PE for children and young people. The LPSA target as defined in the Council’s Service Plan states the need to ensure that “all schools are working towards the stretch target of 90% of pupils accessing 2 hours high quality PE”.

8.5 New changes to the KS3 PE Curriculum allow more flexibility in the programme to make it more relevant to learners as well as allowing the flexibility to tailor it so that it has a greater impact on the individual. They will also strengthen the cross curricular elements allowing PE to become more embedded in the overall school curriculum. Schools are therefore being encouraged to consider their curriculum as part of the whole learning experience of children and not just the lessons. This is key in convincing more school heads about the value of PE as a subject and how it can be used to help pupils attain success in other subject areas.

8.6 The new curriculum implementation will formally begin with the Year 7 intake in September 2008 but it is not required to be fully implemented until 2011.

8.7 The changes provide an opportunity for programmes to be tailored to meet the needs of young people with regards to the types of activities they want to engage. It is hoped that this will address some of the issues that face drop out rates of young girls in particular and their attitude to PE. This also provides the opportunity for more sports (resources allowing) to be able to link up with schools and provide specific coaching in “non traditional” sports such as korfball and handball for example as well as some of the extreme sports that Milton Keynes aspires to be a leader in.

School Sport Partnerships and Specialist Sports Colleges 8.8 There is currently one Specialist Sports College in Milton Keynes, Leon

School in Bletchley which gained its status in 1998. There are two School Sports Partnerships in Milton Keynes based at Leon and Radcliffe which are linked with all of the secondary and primary schools across the city.

• The delivery mechanism for schools to enable young people to be part of the PE and School Sport programme has been the network of School Sport Partnerships. The hub of these has been a Specialist Sports College. In Milton Keynes there is currently one – Leon School in Bletchley. The Radcliffe School, following an Ofsted inspection in January 2008, went back into special measures and therefore its potential status as the City’s second Specialist Sports College is on hold until the school’s status has been resolved. Both the school and the Council have lodged formal complaints about the “conduct of the inspectors and the accuracy of the judgements”.

8.9 The geographical location of these two schools is good, with one in the south of the city and one in the north of the city. However the


increasing number of schools is meaning that each partnership contains on average 55 schools which is a large number to manage.

8.10 One of the many tasks to be undertaken by the Partnership Development Managers is to influence head teachers as to the importance of Physical Education and the part that it can play in the development not only of the individual but also of schools as a whole.

Issue – Should other Sports Colleges be nominated, and are there sufficient schools sports partnerships in the area? Issue – Would Milton Keynes benefit from additional Sports Colleges being developed? 8.11 The latest PE School Sport Club Link Survey (2006) showed that there

was still work to do in the Milton Keynes schools to raise standards and levels of participation. Encouragingly the numbers of young people who are participating in at least two hours of high-quality PE and out-of-hours school sport in a typical week (92%) is above the national average (86%), and 72.5% of pupils were involved in intra-school competitive activities which is again above the national average (71%)

8.12 There is still work to be carried out particularly at Key Stages 1 and 2 where the results show poorer levels of participation than nationally in the following areas:

• two hours of high-quality PE and out-of-hours school sport in a typical week

• intra-school competitive activities

• inter-school competition

• one or more community sports, dance or multi-skill clubs with links to the school

8.13 Surveys such as that undertaken by the Community Safety Partnership at the Stantonbury campus where over 1800 young people were surveyed about issues that they faced are critical in understanding their needs. Lack of facilities featured highly in the responses received.

8.14 This was backed up by discussions with the Milton Keynes Youth Cabinet who expressed a dissatisfaction about the delivery of PE, particularly in the 6th form, and a desire to see a greater range of activities delivered perhaps by sharing a common PE afternoon which would allow a wider range of activities to take place

Issue – How do we ensure that the curriculum which is delivered meets the needs of the pupils in a way which results in full engagement in the subject? High Quality PE 8.15 Throughout the consultation process, several key issues were

repeated. These were concerns over the delivery of PE, both in school and out of school hours, and the quality of facilities particularly on primary school sites.

8.16 Nationally there is an awareness of the quality of delivery of PE in primary schools. In a small number of instances PE can be delivered


in a creative, enthusiastic way. All too often is it delivered by teachers who have little empathy with the subject and/or a lack of confidence.

8.17 A major change is required at a national level to deal with this issue which is outside the scope of this strategy. This will take some time to deliver. In the mean time at a local level, initiatives need to be developed to make changes which will benefit children in schools in the short and medium terms. Schools should not be afraid to try out new ideas and these must be supported by the school management and through the School Sports partnership network.

Issue – Is the delivery of PE in primary schools is in need of a new approach? 8.18 Increasingly schools are using coaches to help with the delivery of both

curriculum and extracurricular activities. There is a very mixed reaction to this approach. In some schools coaches are welcomed and seen as part of the team, in other schools the use of coaches is not seen as an appropriate way of delivering activities. At Bushfield School in Wolverton a full time coach has been employed by the school to deliver a range of curricular and extra curricular activities. This has proved to be very successful and he has had a positive impact on the whole school and is seen as very much part of the team. The coach is also now training as a teacher, so in due course he will be able to fulfil the whole role. Another approach is to use the new Bucks Sports Coaching Agency to provide qualified, high quality, reliable coaches who are committed to their own professional development. Many of these will have curriculum expertise being themselves past teachers or PE trained.

Issue – Can alternative ways of delivering PE in schools be developed through the use of coaches? Issue – How are the coaches monitored to ensure that they are delivering a high quality provision during curricular and extra curricular sessions? Issue – There must be a clearly defined and close working partnership between Sports Development, PDM’s and SSCO’s to ensure that additional 3 hours of extended activities is successful across Milton Keynes. Extended Activities Programme

8.19 The newly launched PE and Sport Strategy for Young People has established targets that will encourage all pupils to have access to five hours of sport and physical activity per week as well as for the first time setting targets for all 16 – 19 year olds to participate in sporting activities for at least three hours per week either at college or through local clubs.

8.20 This delivery will be through a mixture of physical education as part of the curriculum, after school activities and sport as well as through strong community links. It will encourage those who like sport, but are not part of the “sporty” set to become more engaged. This will incorporate more choice than ever before. It is likely that these targets will become part of the LAA targets in future years and could be monitored by the CSN.


Issue – Should the new PESSYP targets be monitored by the CSN? Extended Schools

8.21 The extended programme has a vision of “the life chances of every child and family to be enhanced through access to high quality services and activities within their local school and community”.

8.22 To achieve this programme the following targets to be achieved by 2010 have been set

• All parents of primary aged pupils will be able to access affordable childcare from 8.00 am until 6.00pm. Half of schools will be expected to make this provision by 2008

• All secondary schools will be open 8.00am - 6.00pm for 48 weeks a year providing a range of activities for young people. A third of schools will be making this provision by 2008.

• All 3-4 year olds will have 15 hours of free integrated learning for 38 weeks a year.

8.23 To achieve successful delivery of the core offer schools need to work closely with parents, children and others to shape these activities around the needs of their community; in addition if demand is high, schools may choose to provide extra services. Clearly within this programme there is a real opportunity to develop sport outside of the curriculum. This needs to be explored and expanded to ensure that all young people are being offered the opportunity to participate in sport and physical activity at whatever level they chose

Playing for Success

8.24 Part of Extended Schools service has been the development of the Playing for Success programme. Playing for Success (PfS) is a partnership between the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), local authorities and a broad range of sports. Partners include clubs and the Premier League and Football Leagues, Rugby League and Union, cricket, basketball, hockey, ice hockey, gymnastics and tennis. In all, 18 different sports are represented in the PfS Programme.

8.25 The centres open out of school hours and mainly cater for KS 2 3 pupils who are at risk of underachieving, using the stimulus of sport to motivate them. Each centre is managed by a centre manager (an experienced teacher), supported by tutor/mentors and other support staff, and centres provide access to state of the art IT equipment. Typically, each student receives 20 hours of tuition.

8.26 The focus for work in Milton Keynes has been the MK Dons stadium where the latest centre opened in October 2007. Whilst it is still very much a developing centre sixteen schools have already used its services this year. Currently, the work is very much classroom/IT room based until the Arena is officially functioning as there is no where that a physical activity programme can be run on site.


8.27 Even though the Centre is new, the Manager already has plans to extend the range of centres across Milton Keynes to include basketball, extreme sports sites such as SnoZone, outdoor activity centres such as Caldecotte and perhaps the ice rink. The power of sport as a tool to motivate young people is enormous and the PfS Centres have shown that they can make a contribution to supporting under achieving pupils in schools.

8.28 Research on the longer term impact of the programme by the National Foundation for Educational Research has shown that

• Lower attaining pupils who attended PfS made up to two months’ greater progress in their KS2 assessments

• At KS3, pupils who attended PfS made around two months’ greater progress than pupils who did not attend, in relation to their average KS3 score;

• Secondary schools which sent some of their pupils to PfS made greater progress than schools which did not participate, in terms of their KS3 mathematics and science results. The additional progress was equivalent to about three months.

8.29 Whilst the programme is still in its infancy in Milton Keynes there are plans nationally to move the focus away from sport and more towards the Arts and Media. The decision on the new direction will be made in the next few months. However, there is no denying the fact that PfS is a valuable tool in using sport as a medium to inspire young people.

Issue – Does PfS need to work more in partnership with sports development and local clubs to widen the scope of the programme across the City? Extended Activities

8.30 To build on the national success to increase the number of young people receiving 2 hours High Quality PE & School Sport, the Prime Minister recently announced further investment into the National School Sport Strategy in order to give every child and young person aged between 5 and 19 the chance to do 5 hours of sport a week

8.31 Extended activities’ is one of 5 funding streams to deliver on the 5 hour offer and aims to:

• Bring together school & community sport.

• Engage the 50% of children and young people classed as ‘semi sporty’ types to achieve the 5 hour offer.

• Identify pinch points/priorities at KS2/3 transition and 14 to 19 age range.

• Increase young people directed to clubs, reducing post 16 drop off.

• Develop traditional clubs to attract a wider range of young people.

• Develop new types of ‘clubs’.

• Improve signposting & access (via foot) to venues.


• Run introductory sessions for alternative activities. 8.32 In addition to this funding, each SSP is also being allocated a dedicated

sum of money to increase activity in what is being labelled as the ‘sporty’ types i.e. those children who are currently involved in 4 hours of sport per week.

8.33 Issue – Is there the capacity within the current structures to deliver all these extended activities?

8.34 Issue – Are we delivering the correct activities to encourage children and young people to participate for the additional 2 hours?

High Quality School Sport School Club Links

8.35 There were concerns from the consultation that whilst clubs and schools support the concept of school club links, the programme in its current format was not working. The establishment of a solid school club link programme needs to be established to ensure that pathways between school and club are easy for young people to find and access, more information needs to be gathered to identify the issues and a new way of working set into place.

Issue - Should further work be carried out to establish a new model of school club links? Gifted and Talented

8.36 One of the strands of PESSCL is around the development of Gifted and Talented pupils. The strand is divided in to four areas:

• Benchmarking

• Talent Identification in PE

• Provision for talented young athletes

• Support for talented athletes. 8.37 Within this area a number of initiatives have been established to give

gifted and talented young people the best chance of success. Initiatives include Multi-skill Academies, Performance Camps and a Junior Athlete Education Programme. These all link into the School Sport Competition Framework which is supported by a number of Governing Bodies of Sport. It is important that within Milton Keynes the pathway for school sport embraces all levels of participation and young people with talent are supported

Issue – Should the strategy support the development of young people who are gifted and talented to reach their potential within the school sport structure? Competition Managers

8.38 Buckinghamshire County Council has recently advertised for a team of Competition Managers to work strategically across the


Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes area. Their role will be to link the competition programme with other strands of the PESSCL strategy and related national programmes, whilst monitoring and reporting on its success.

8.39 There is potential for one of these posts to be based in Milton Keynes and it is vital that this opportunity is secured. This will allow the opportunity for that post holder to link into the whole new emerging sport and PE structure and ensure that the competitive structure for young people across schools and clubs is better coordinated.

Issue – How is the national school sport competition framework going to be absorbed into the current school sport structure which is applied in Milton Keynes?

APPENDIX 6 Sports Development Section Two - Milton ...

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