There is an important moral, ethical and social case for making sure that everyone has access to sport, no matter what their race, sex, income or disability. Tackling poverty and disadvantage in the East Midlands is a priority for government and all regional agencies. Our poorer communities suffer poverty, unemployment, low education and skills, poor health and poor access to services. Complex problems need complex solutions, and providers will have to work in partnerships.

Reducing sport inequalities and widening access is an important theme running through this plan. We need to provide the solutions to increase and widen participation for everyone, no matter what their age, sex, ethnic origin or disability, to reduce inequality in participation among priority groups. We need to value and promote cultural differences. A more detailed report on issues affecting participation in sport by black and minority ethnic communities is included in the viewpoints related to this plan.

Access to sport in rural areas is more difficult because of transport problems and lack of facilities, but a significant percentage of the region’s population lives in the countryside. Transport is also an important issue, identified in the plan consultation, for disabled people.

For case studies go to our Sport Changes Lives page

Strategic aims

• To make sure all individuals can participate in sport, focusing on areas of rural isolation and urban deprivation, and groups who do not take part in sport
  
• To make sure regional and local organisations workingto reduce disadvantage in communities realise the value of sport’s contribution to this work

Key actions

• Make sure funding priorities take account of the most economically disadvantaged people throughout the plan (women and girls, disabled people, people who live in isolated areas, and black and minority ethnic communities)
  
• Develop a Regional Sport Board Equality and Inclusion Policy, and ask all funded partners to commit to its aims
  
• Support the development of the regional equity organisations (EFDS EM, WSF EM, VOICE) and explore the potential for greater co-operation and sharing
  
• Make sure the recommendations of the RSB Race Equality Group report, ‘Meeting the Needs’, are put into practice and their progress is monitored carefully
  
• Use secondments within regeneration agencies in the region to secure mainstream investment to reduce inequality through sport
  
• Secure resources for work which focuses on widening access to sport
  
• Use Regeneration East Midlands’ ‘network of excellence’ to support the training needs of sport workers
  
• Use sport to help rural regeneration through the Market Towns Initiative and Rural Diversification Programme
  
• Run pilot schemes aimed at involving large employers in disadvantaged areas in the East Midlands to test opportunities to change the culture of participation for their staff
  
• Work through the proposed Regional ACT and Local Transport Planners to tackle the importance of transport in increasing participation and reducing inequality
  
• Work with WSF and other partners to develop sport in the East Midlands for women and girls. Also hold a regional conference to influence future policy and investment decisions involving women and girls
  
• Support initiatives that encourage existing clubs to include more people from under-represented parts of society
  
• Make sure key partners work with Connexions, schools and other partners to deal with people who drop out of school, particularly girls
  
• Work with the PESCCL programme to make sure it delivers physical literacy and that all young people take part in sport throughout their lives.