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Launched:
1st March 2000

News Report

Community Chest Celebrates a Decade of Funding

(2nd Apr 2009 04:46 PM)
Article by: Zoe Mendham

A booming junior section at a ladies football club in Cardiff is ensuring that the future of the beautiful game looks bright, largely thanks to Community Chest funding from the Sports Council for Wales.

Community Chest, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, is a National Lottery grant managed by the Sports Council for Wales and supported locally by Cardiff Council. It is designed to encourage more people to become more physically active, more often.

After a decade’s worth of investment totalling over £9million, the Sports Council for Wales and the National Lottery are celebrating the successes of community groups and sports clubs that have flourished through unlocking Community Chest funding.

Cardiff City Ladies Football Club is one such example, having received eight Community Chest grants to significantly develop them into a side to be reckoned with.

Starting as merely a senior women’s side in 1975; it wasn’t until a decade later that the club began to develop its junior section which, thanks to the National Lottery cash, has now flourished into a vibrant and successful structure running five sections for U12s, U14s and U16s. Add to this the two senior women’s sides and you have a club that has evolved into the most successful women’s club in Wales.

Karen Jones, club secretary, comments on the impact the funding has had over the years: “The Community Chest scheme has had a huge influence on our coaching structure as we have used the majority of the grant aid in assisting with our coach education programmes.”

Members of the community have also benefitted from the partnership between the club and the Sports Council for Wales, Karen explains:
“The financial security has allowed us the confidence to source volunteers, who themselves benefit, in becoming better trained and qualified coaches via the courses available to them supported by the scheme.”

A significant increase in membership was seen at Cardiff City Ladies FC after the mini section was established three seasons ago – entirely through Community Chest funding. The now 140 strong club used the cash injection to purchase equipment, hire a facility and train coaches and volunteers in order to provide girls aged 9-12 with the opportunity to take to the pitch.

As well as providing many Welsh international players, at both U19s and senior level, in recent seasons the club has proven unbeatable in the Welsh Cup. Taking home the silver seven times has brought with it entry into the UEFA Club Championships, allowing Cardiff to have played club football in Poland, Croatia and Portugal against the best club teams from all over Europe.

Karen comments on how the funding helped the club embark on the FAW Club Accreditation scheme in 2005,
“We not only focussed the scheme on the junior section but across the club in general and were delighted in 2007 to become the first all women and girls club in Wales to gain silver status. This was only achieved through the commitment and dedication of our coaches and volunteers at the club and the financial support from the Community Chest programme in gaining all the relevant coaching standards.”

The FAW accreditation ensures a better and safer environment for its players and coaches. This combined with closer school links is proving another successful development for the future growth of Cardiff City Ladies and Welsh Women’s football.

Since its inception in 1999, communities across the length and breadth of Wales have been investing heavily in sports and physical activity projects.
The Sports Council for Wales has recently raised the level of grant available. Organisations keen to develop sport and physical activity in Wales can receive up to £1000 for a qualifying project over a 12 month period.

Chair of the Sports Council for Wales, Philip Carling, said:
“Community Chest has been and continues to be a huge success and is very popular throughout Cardiff. Over the last ten years, it has made a big difference to small community projects right across Wales and now embraces all sorts of community groups such as the Women’s Institute, not just your local football club.”

“Panels based in each of the 22 local authorities in Wales hold the purse strings and have delegated authority to award grants to worthwhile projects. We want to hear of bright ideas and projects that will get more people in Cardiff more active, more often.”

Sports clubs are a vital part of the fabric of community life. They, and the people behind the scenes, have the opportunity to source and mould young talent into the stars of the future and instil the core values of hard work, belief and – above all – enjoyment of the sport.

Community Chest funding is helping to create and support new sporting opportunities for young people all across Wales. Funding can be used to train coaches and administrators, small-scale equipment grants for junior development, the establishment of competitive structures for juniors within the community, junior club start-up costs and support for sporting events and festivals.

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