11/11/2020- Fight for Peace has been awarded National Lottery funding from Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund to help reduce the negative impact of COVID-19 and the widening of inequalities in sport and physical activity.
Research shows that certain groups of people are being disproportionately affected by the pandemic, significantly impacting their ability to be physically active. The Tackling Inequalities Fund is a response to this, helping reduce the negative impact on activity levels in under-represented groups, with a specific focus on lower socio-economic groups, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, disabled people and people with long-term health conditions. SportEngland’s work through this fund helps ensure that gaps between those who are active and those who are not do not widen at this challenging time.
The funding awarded to Fight for Peace will see young people in six communities across the UK have access to combat sports, personal development and mentoring activities over a period of six months.
While Fight for Peace will deliver these activities to young people in Newham, east London, the majority of the funding will be re-distributed to Fight for Peace Alliance member organisations working in communities in England. These organisations – Vulcan (Hull), Switch Up (Nottingham), Sheffield City Boxing Club (Sheffield) and Gloves Not Guns (Croydon) – will deliver corresponding sport and youth work activities to young people in their own localities.
All five organisations will meet regularly over the six month period with the aim of exchanging learning and insights emerging from the project. This knowledge will be consolidated by Fight for Peace and shared more widely with other UK based Alliance member organisations in the form of written, audio and film content.
The Fight for Peace Alliance, which promotes knowledge exchange, collaboration and the co-creation of projects as a means of strengthening community based organisations and best serving young people, currently has a total of 127 member organisations stretching across 17 countries.
Fight for Peace Head of International Programmes, Susi Taylor said:
“We are delighted and proud to have received this funding from Sport England’s Tackling Inequalities Fund. It will allow us and four of our Alliance partners to continue invaluable work supporting young people’s physical and mental wellbeing during this particularly stressful and difficult time caused by COVID-19. Fight for Peace’s Alliance partners in the UKand beyond have overcome extraordinary challenges since March and gone above and beyond to support their communities. These funds will help them to keep going, and will contribute to the aims of the Fight for Peace Alliance to help partner organisations become more effective and sustainable over the short and long-term.”
Tim Hollingsworth, Sport England’s Chief Executive, said:
“We are proud to be able to provide funding and support to Fight for Peace and its Alliance member organisations in this difficult period. This funding will help support our valuable community infrastructure that is so important in keeping the nation active and will also provide important connections and reconnections for people whose lives have been affected by COVID-19 and for whom remaining active is so important for their physical, mental and social wellbeing. We know from our research and data that there are existing inequalities between groups when it comes to activity levels and COVID-19 has re-enforced these.
“Thanks to the support of the National Lottery and its players, the Tackling Inequalities Fund will be both crucial and central to ensuring no-one is left behind when it comes to having the opportunity to be active during this period. This builds off the back of our £35m Community Emergency Fund that has already reached and supported over 7,500 community clubs and groups across England.”