Value-for-money doubts threaten sport funding
By Rebecca Burns
Funding for sport is in the firing line after a report from the National Audit Office (NAO) concluded its budget had not delivered value for money.
The report, released on Thursday, found that despite a £660 million budget Sport England did not achieve its targets between 2005 and 2008.
In the face of the government’s budget deficit, the report could make sport a vulnerable target for the government’s efficiency savings.
Amyas Morse, head of the National Audit Office, said: “Getting more people involved in sport is no easy task… the Department [of Culture Media and Sport] (DCMS) and Sport England also need to do more to demonstrate the value for money of its distribution of funds between different sports.”
Sport England, which is supervised by the DCMS, is responsible for increasing participation in sport.
Its ‘priority groups’ are women, people from black and minority ethnic communities, people with a limiting disability and those in lower socio-economic groups.
Sport England hopes up to 700,000 more people will be doing sport by March 2013.
