Pro Active Camden (PAC) is one of the leading CSPANs in England, with a proud track record of cross cutting work in one of London’s most dynamic and diverse boroughs. Back in 2009, The Sport, Leisure and Culture Consultancy supported PAC in the development of its Sport and Physical Activity strategy. Building on the original five year strategy, PAC has sought to further develop it by creating a sport specific three year action plan from 2013-2016. The aim of this action plan was to prioritise resources and focus for the next three critical post Olympic and Paralympic years. In order to ensure that the plan was needs driven and took account of for example; local factors, facility provision, club capacity and  sport in schools, a prioritisation and diagnostic toolkit was developed to support the planning process. An experienced team worked alongside SLC to refine the model including representatives from Pro-Active Central London and Camden’s sports development and health teams. The model features:

  • an evaluation tool to enable sports to be shortlisted for prioritisation and analysis
  • a diagnostic tool to identify the specific development needs of an individual sport
  • a framework to support detailed action planning and target setting.

Not only does the model identify which sports to prioritise support for within a Borough, it also identifies specific areas for improvement in optimising the participation rates of a sport within the Borough. The tool can also be used to support local planning for NGBs, Pro Actives and Boroughs alike. Some of the key learning that came from use of the prioritisation and diagnostic toolkit included:

  • The need for sports development teams to have up to date information on levels of activity in individual sports in the borough
  • The need for up to date data on sports participation and club memberships, coaching numbers and capacity
  • The need to understand each school’s approach to sport and sports development.

Nigel Robinson, Head of Sport and Physical Activity, LB Camden said “I wanted a transparent process for testing our knowledge and assumptions about the need in Camden, the current offer and  where to concentrate resources for maximal impact in future. The process had to be systematic, flexible but bullet proof. It took time to develop and refine the model but it was well worth it. Its early days following the evaluation but I have an exciting plan that is enabling me to re-prioritise resources strategically, have a focussed discussion with external partners and get buy-in from key decision makers in Camden at elected member and strategic director level. In short, SLC delivered what I wanted and were good value.” 

For more information on how SLC can support your Sport Development Strategic Planning give us a call on 01444 487740.