Big Society, sport and the London Youth Games

The ‘Big Society’ has become one of the continuous themes of the Conservatives since it was unveiled by David Cameron in the run up the general election. However, if you sat a group of people down and asked them what they think the ‘Big Society’ means, I would hazard a guess that you’d receive a variety of definitions.

In my opinion, central to the idea of the ‘Big Society’ is the notion of individuals coming together and working for the good of their communities.

I have recently been appointed as a Trustee for the London Youth Games Foundation and my induction and initial involvement with the organisation has crystallised my belief that sport represents an excellent model for the ‘Big Society’.

The London Youth Games delivers Europe’s largest annual youth sports event in the Capital, involving all 33 London boroughs and some 26 national governing bodies (NGBs). The Games are open to all young people aged between seven and 17, who live or go to school in the capital. In 2010 over 50,000 participants began the journey to represent their local borough in one of 60 competitions across 30 sports. London Youth Games has worked with various expert stakeholders, such as its member NGBs, to ensure the competitions that are developed feed into player development pathways. This helps achieve increases in participation beyond the Games.

As part of my board member induction, I attended the finals of the indoor cricket cup competition at Lords. I watched both the boys and the girls’ competitions with interest and never have I felt so passionate about the borough of Havering (where I grew up). The excitement and thrill of the participants was infectious and as I stood absorbing the atmosphere, several thoughts ran through my mind. My immediate thought was surprise about the competitive nature of the girls’ competition, especially bearing in mind that when I was at school in Havering there was little (if any) cricket provision for girls. It was great to see what the London Youth Games had helped to create. Secondly, the opportunities provided by the Games – in this case, playing at the Home of Cricket – are exactly what we should be offering our young people. I was also taken by the real sense of belonging displayed by all of the borough teams. This sense of belonging is vital to building strong communities. Finally, I thought about the event’s organisers, GamesForce – the London Youth Games volunteer team - and how they provided a great example of people getting involved in a project to advance their skills, whilst at the same time helping communities come together to take part in events and competitions.

I left the tournament feeling proud to be associated with the London Youth Games, but also proud to be from the London Borough of Havering. As the Government tries to develop policies and initiatives that demonstrate what the ‘Big Society’ is, it should take note of the fact that sport has a lot to offer by way of existing examples.

The ‘Big Society’ should not be about government policy dictating how sport or other initiatives should be run - it should be about allowing and encouraging existing initiatives and projects, such as the London Youth Games, to flourish and develop.

Joy Tottman
Compliance Officer at the Sport and Recreation Alliance