City Games sport legacy bid set to miss targets
Political Correspondent THE Commonwealth Games has not led to more people taking part in sport and legacy targets are unlikely to be met, according to a new report.
A shortage of facilities and cost were found to be “significant barriers” to people being more active in community sport groups.
The interim report by the Scottish Parliament Health and Sport Committee found there is more work needed to encourage participation in grassroots sport.
In a survey of 3000 carried out for the committee, women were twice as likely not to take part with family and caring commitments given as reasons why not.
The inquiry which included visits to Community Sports Hubs around Scotland found the support for volunteering during the Games has not led to an increase in community volunteering, which it said was ”essential” for community sports programmes and clubs.
The MSPs’ report said that while no previous major sporting event had led to an active legacy, the Scottish Government was unlikely to meet its targets in increasing participation.
Neil Findlay, committee convenor, said: “The Committee has seen some excellent work being undertaken by enthusiastic volunteers in communities across the country, but it is clear that there’s still more that needs to be done to increase levels of participation in sport and physical activity.
“It is disappointing that the tremendous enthusiasm of volunteers in supporting the Commonwealth Games has not been converted into a legacy of ongoing participation in voluntary activity, especially in sport.”
The report found most witnesses to the inquiry and the Scottish Health Survey do not perceive there is an achieved active legacy.
Between 2014 and 2015, the numbers who met activity recommendations fell for both boys and girls. And for adults there were minor changes but a big drop among 25 to 34 year olds.
The report revisited a quote from the then First Minister Alex Salmond when he said: “More importantly, we owe it to ourselves to deliver a real, positive and lasting legacy from the Games.
“As a country, we bid for the Games, not just because we wanted to see some of the world’s best athletes competing in Scotland, but because we saw the potential of the Games to inspire change in our society, to improve people’s health and to give our children greater chances in life.”
Witnesses to the committee warned against raising expectations to high.
The committee conclude: Overall the Committee sees no current evidence of an active legacy from the 2014 Games.”