PRO-ACTIVE South London Newsletter - Issue 28 - December 2008

London has more parks than most other capital cities, but whilst many of these are attractive and welcoming, others are not well used because they are shabby, or people don’t feel safe using them.

Help a London Park has been developed as part of the Mayor of London's initiative to clean up and improve London’s rundown green spaces.

He will be giving ten grants of up to £400 000 to London’s most needy parks to make them cleaner, safer, greener, and nicer places to visit, and he will also award one grant of up to £2 million for an exceptional project in a really run down park.

One of the best parts of the project is that, for the ten main grants, Londoners get to vote on which are chosen and improved.

From almost 100 parks put forward by the London boroughs, 47 have been shortlisted for the public vote. To help you find a park near where you live or work, they have divided them into the five London sub-regions (North West, North, North East, South East and South West).The winners will be the two parks in each of the five London sub-regions, which get the most votes.

Voting is quick and easy and open to all Londoners. Simply go to www.london.gov.uk/parksvote and vote for your favourite park.

So hurry and tell all your colleagues, friends and family and prepare to get voting!

Voting

Vote for a park

Closes: 30th January 2009

Website

www.london.gov.uk/parksvote

January will see the launch of PRO-ACTIVE London (South & Central) Coaching Bursary Plus (LBC+). The LBC+ project will run across South and Central London, with funding from SkillsActive, the Sector Skills Council for Active Sport and Leisure, and supported by a range of partners including NGBs and London Active Communities.

The aim of the project is to support those with existing youth and community work qualifications in developing coaching qualifications, and those who have existing sporting qualifications with youth and community work qualifications. The overall objective is to offer beneficiaries a package of needs-led qualifications using a credit-based system developed by SkillsActive in conjunction with the five PRO-ACTIVE Partnerships.

The target is for 40 people to be enrolled on the scheme, which will run from the January to July 2009. Project partners London Youth, the Amateur Boxing Association, the English Table Tennis Association, the RFU, the London FA, London Youth Dance and PRO-ACTIVE South and Central London will each be responsible for selecting five candidates to undertake the programme of training, with additional support from London Active Communities.

A range of training courses will be offered as part of the programme, including Governing Body coaching awards, youthwork and community sports work courses, and fitness and dance qualifications. Candidates will need to demonstrate either significant current commitment to coaching in the community, or potential to do so. For an application form or further information, please contact the most appropriate partner:

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has provided some funding to Croydon Council to improve and develop local play spaces; this funding is called Playbuilder Grants Programme 2009-11 and, as a result of it, Croydon is investing £1.1 million between now and March 2011 in making better public play spaces for children, young people, families and the whole community.

Are there play spaces that you would like to improve or develop in your local area? If yes, then Playbuilder may be the grants programme for you.

Playbuilder is offering up to £50,000 per project to be spent on improving the quality and range of Croydon's local play spaces . It can only be spent on equipment, design of play spaces and building work. It cannot be used to pay for staff or co-ordinators, rent or maintenance etc... Play spaces must be free and open access

The Council is very keen in having community organisations involved in this. You can either:

Put a bid in yourself if you need a play area to be built on your premises or you want to improve the one you have now.

Contact the Council to discuss any play area that is local to you and you really think would benefit from being improved as part of this project. You can see in the guidance that you can contact different people depending on where the site is (park / estate etc). Even if you have a simple idea on what needs improving, it is worth discussing it with them as they might be able to develop a pratical way of getting a result.

The closing date for this year applications is 2pm on Friday 16th January 2009. Discuss your idea with Julie Christie on Julie.Christie@croydon.gov.uk or call her on 020 8604 7147.

The people at 'Make Sport Fun' have built a search box which anyone can put on their website. It allows the public to easily find their nearest club, facility, walking group, playing field, playground, etc. Why not try it out for yourself.

To put this search box on your website just enter this line of code into your site, or email it to your webmaster.

<IFRAME src="http://searchforsport.co.uk/" width="470" scrolling="no" height="75></IFRAME>"

The Activity Search Tool is part of the Promoting Activity toolkit, a set of tools to help you bring the Change4Life campaign to life in your area. For more information about Change4Life see these YouTube videos or visit change4life.com.

The inaugural PRO-ACTIVE South London Festival of Sport will take place on the 21st and 22nd March 2009.

Apply to deliver an activity now - Up to £250 of funding available!

In celebrating the conclusion of both Sport Unlimited and ABLE2, London's Winter of Sport is coming to South London in the New Year courtesy of PRO-ACTIVE South London (P-ASL).

A vast number of coaches, participants and administrators have played a part in 2008, building one of the most successful programmes in the country for semi-sporty young people through Sport Unlimited.

The year also saw the launch of South London's very own ABLE2, a programme specifically dedicated to increasing the awareness of sport for disabled people.

Three events will concurrently be staged during over the weekend of the 21st and 22nd March 2009 across South London thanks to our host partners Bromley College, Harris Academy Merton and Richmond-upon-Thames College.

These events will be open to participants involved in the two programmes as well as members of the general public.

Through the Winter of Sport initiative we will be offering small grants to those who wish to deliver taster sessions. This opportunity will not only allow people to sample a new sport but also provide an opportunity for clubs to encourage people to join for more regular activity.

Further information for potential delivery partners is as follows:

. Dates: 21/22 March 2009

. Venues:

Bromley College (Sat 21st)

Harris Academy Merton (Sat 21st and Sun 22nd)

Richmond-upon-Thames College (Sun 22nd)

. Times: Registrations from 9:45am, activities to commence from 10:00am - 4:00pm

. Contact names and numbers will be needed incase information specific to your sport is required by potential participants

. The activities that are delivered will be subject to facility provision at each site and its level of availability

. Grants of up to £250 will be allocated; preference will be made to those applicants who have delivered in Sport Unlimited and/or ABLE2.

Marketing and communications to be coordinated centrally by P-ASL and Limelight Sports, resources will be available and contact will be made with Schools and Delivery Partners.

NGB's are encouraged to make contact if their sport hasn't been involved in Sport Unlimited or ABLE2 so that arrangements can be made for them to be active on either of the days.

To apply, please complete and return the application form by the Friday 16th January 2009.

Panathlon Challenge involves various sports specifically designed to be more appropriate to young disabled people. These vary depending upon the impairment group. Panathlon operates several models for MLD Panathlon, SLD/PI Panathlon, EBD Panathlon.

Moreover local partners advise regarding the priorities in the various cities we operate in.

For example, in London the SLD/PI Panathlon involves -

Boccia

Table Cricket

Polybat

Football

New Age Kurling

Athletics Field events and specific relay race events to include all abilities.

For our moderate learning difficulty events we additionally have a mix of sports including, football, netball, kwik cricket, tag rugby, ten pin bowling, orienteering and athletics.

A toolkit is available to purchase with complete sets of rules and entry forms for non disabled and disability sports competitions.

In Mainsteam Panathlon, 9 sports have been competed for 10 years. These are Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Chess, Cycling, Football, Netball, Orienteering and Table Tennis.

Certificates and medals are awarded to all those who compete, regardless of ability.

For more information on choice of sports, age groups and technical breakdown, then please get in touch at enquiries@panathlon.com

Walk off the Winter Blues by joining "Walk London"

The "Winter Wanderers Weekend" is being held on Saturday 31 January and Sunday 1 February 2009 for free led walks all over London.

To find your local winter wanderer please check at www.walklondon.org.uk or e-mail info@walklondon.org.uk

Protect yourself, the young people you are coaching and your employer by understanding and following good coaching practice. Learn about child abuse and how to handle situations if you have concerns.

This workshop will help you to:

• Identify good coaching practice to promote a positive relationship with children
• Identify sport situations and coaching practice that might constitute either poor practice or possible abuse
• Describe the different categories of child abuse and recognise the signs and symptoms of each
• Provide you with the knowledge of how to take appropriate action if concerns are raised.

A full first aid qualififcation, recognised by the Health & Safety Executive, this award is valid for three years and is a legal requirement for those acting as recognised first aiders at work. This course is offered as part of the Diploma in Personal Training, at a reduced rate.A full first aid qualififcation, recognised by the Health & Safety Executive, this award is valid for three years and is a legal requirement for those acting as recognised first aiders at work. This course is offered as part of the Diploma in Personal Training, at a reduced rate.

Continuing Professional Development Workshops for Coaches held at the Short Courses Unit at St Mary's University College TwickenhamThis half day session will introduce the role of diet and nutrition in supporting sporting performance. You will be introduced to the theory behind two key areas of sports nutrition:

- The role of hydration in sporting performance
- The importance of nutritional recovery for the athlete in training
In addition to the theoretical concepts the sessions will provide the opportunity to focus on the practical advice to support sporting performance.

This short course is ideal for coaches, parents of young athlets who themselves are interested in the role that nutrition can play in supporting training and sporting performance

The session will be delivered by sports nutritionsts experienced at working with world class athletes in a number of sports

AWARD: St Mary's Certificate of Attendance

For application, information and queries please contact the Professional Short Courses Unit at the School of Human Sciences, St Mary's University College

We don’t have to tell you that leisure transforms lives and revolutionises health outcomes. But we will look to you to tell us how to maximise participation in leisure, sport and recreation activities, as you bring your own brand of leadership to our highly regarded Leisure and Physical Activity Service. You’ll leverage maximum benefit for residents every day and will work with our outsourced leisure centre provider to maximise participation in state-of the-art facilities the length and breadth of the borough.

Your understanding of local, regional and national issues in sport and leisure should be second to none - just like your track record to date in contract management, and project management. With proven ability to motivate staff and partners in the fast-moving leisure and physical activity environments, you’re looking for an altogether bigger canvas - and the chance to make your mark for generations to come.

Special Instructions: For further information and to apply, please visit www.hackney.gov.uk/jobs-careers Alternatively, please call Tribal on 0845 313 3140, quoting reference CS336.

Closing Date: 09.01.2009

Contact: To find out more about this opportunity, please contact Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.

The 2012 Olympics will be a landmark here in Hackney. We see them as an ideal opportunity to create a long-term legacy for all our residents, as we invest in some very exciting projects, including the development of a new sports development team, leisure facilities and pre-Olympic training camps that meet the highest international standards. The excitement is enormous and we’re ready to do whatever it takes to build on our new three star status and reputation as one of London’s fastest improving councils - join us and make a difference in Hackney and expect to be stretched and stimulated every day.

Your first challenge will be to lead on the development of the Football Foundation bid for Hackney Marshes. When successful, you’ll be responsible for the future development of football in the area, including building a team of community coaches, raising finance and providing a link between partner organisations including voluntary organisations and existing sports clubs.
You’ll come to us with the ability to devise strategies for the service area and translate them into realisable plans, together with experience in managing staff and operational football projects and programmes alongside sport and physical activity provision. Aware of the issues surrounding the programme, you will also have sound communication skills.

Special Instructions: To find out more about this opportunity, please contact Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.



For further information and to apply, please visit www.hackney.gov.uk/jobs-careers Alternatively, please call Tribal on 0845 313 3140, quoting reference CS339.



Closing date: 9 January 2009.



Interview date: 27 January 2009

Closing Date: 09.01.2009

Contact: Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.

The 2012 Olympics will be a landmark here in Hackney. We see them as an ideal opportunity to create a long-term legacy for all our residents, as we invest in some very exciting projects, including the development of a new sports development team, leisure facilities and pre-Olympic training camps that meet the highest international standards. The excitement is enormous and we’re ready to do whatever it takes to build on our new three star status and reputation as one of London’s fastest improving councils - join us and make a difference in Hackney and expect to be stretched and stimulated every day.

Focused on the health and well-being of the community, you will manage and deliver multiple community sport and physical activity programmes targeted at populations that traditionally have low participation rates.

What’s more, you will co-ordinate Hackney teams for the London Youth Games and other Inter Borough Events in partnership with internal and external organisations.
Strong operations, planning, project co-ordination skills and fund-raising skills, along with an understanding of the sports and physical activity policy framework will be essential.

You’ll also bring considerable experience of managing session staff and contracted organisations, and supporting voluntary sectors sports organisations.

Special Instructions: To find out more about this opportunity, please contact Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.



For further information and to apply, please visit www.hackney.gov.uk/jobs-careers Alternatively, please call Tribal on 0845 313 3140, quoting reference CS338.



Closing date: 9 January 2009.



Interview date: 28 January 2009.

Closing Date: 09.01.2009

Contact: Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.

The 2012 Olympics will be a landmark here in Hackney. We see them as an ideal opportunity to create a long-term legacy for all our residents, as we invest in some very exciting projects, including the development of a new sports development team, leisure facilities and pre-Olympic training camps that meet the highest international standards. The excitement is enormous and we’re ready to do whatever it takes to build on our new three star status and reputation as one of London’s fastest improving councils - join us and make a difference in Hackney and expect to be stretched and stimulated every day.

We’ll look to you to raise the participation rates by 1% per year amongst people over the age of 16 through the development of sport, physical activity and volunteering opportunities. You’ll also be responsible for the administration and support for the Hackney Community Sport & Physical Activity Network (C-SPAN).
A capable people and service manager, you will bring experience of partnership working with the voluntary sector, national governing bodies, professional agencies, and statutory partners to deliver sports and physical activity development services. An understanding of health, physical activity and environmental and other related agendas would also be desirable.

Special Instructions: To find out more about this opportunity, please contact Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.



For further information and to apply, please visit www.hackney.gov.uk/jobs-careers Alternatively, please call Tribal on 0845 313 3140, quoting reference CS337.



Closing date: 9 January 2009.



Interview date: 30 January 2009.

Closing Date: 09.01.2009

Contact: Binnie Crookes, Head of Service on 020 8356 2032.

Use your experience of community sports development to get more of Southwark’s residents physically active. With a particular focus on people with disabilities and women/ girls across Southwark, you will identify the needs of these target groups, then develop innovative interventions for increasing participation and widening opportunity. This means managing a budget of around £300,000 over three years and ensuring that services provided represent value for money.
You will have an understanding of the positive role that sport and physical activity plays in health improvement, as well as its wider social benefits. Having had substantial experience of working with the public, you’ll appreciate the social, economic, psychological and physical barriers to activity faced within a inner city environment. Budgetary management skills are important and you should have a relevant qualification or equivalent experience within the sport and physical activity industry sector.

Special Instructions: To find out more visit www.jobsatsouthwark.co.uk

Reference: 616

Closing Date: 12.01.2009

Contact: 020 7525 0852 (24 hour recruitment line)