There is no denying the fact that sports contribute significantly to the development of the society on the whole. Sports education is considered to be the integral part of education. The role of sport development officer assumes significance since he is responsible for planning, implementation and ensuring quality. There has been a view that sports must be for all for the larger benefit of the society.
It is important to understand the policy framework which governs the issue of sports development. The inclusion of sports is seen as beneficial to the society in the long run since the health care costs have gone up considerably and sports development can help to moderate the damage to a certain extent.
While government's focus seems to be on reduction of spiraling health care costs, there has been demand from pressure groups to include sports development on a larger scale in society. Every successful policy has three vital ingredients to succeed; they are initiation, formulation of the right policy and proper implementation of the policy.
[...] Barriers to participation include: Stereotypes of athletes from sociological ideologies, such as women being inferior; religion and cultural differences; disability and the social constraints for disabled people. For some children athletics is running and usually for fairly long distances. Many children dislike this because the feeling of fatigue is uncomfortable. Compared to sports such as football, athletics receives little broadcasting. There seem to be two renowned competitions in athletics, the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games. These competitions do get TV coverage, but only every four years. [...]
[...] Other sources of funding can come from the New Opportunities Fund which is for urban regeneration and sports complex's can benefit from this. The DCMS will allocate funding to certain organizations if they meet criteria. They must provide a clear strategy for participation and excellence, and, commit themselves to emphasizing social inclusion and fairness. Other sources of funding can come from the exchequer, the DfES, partnerships and commercialization such as TV coverage. The DCMS has stated that 5-10% of TV revenue must be put back into grass roots sports. [...]
[...] However, a small minority of the community may not be as helpful. Facility managers may resist proposals like half price entry fees. They may also resist if days' are suggested as extra equipment may have to be purchased. Managers may oppose schools using the facilities whilst members of the public are around. This would all have to be discussed with the manager prior to the campaign and a suitable agreement must be made. So inclusion for all may have to be structured so that clashes between groups such as youths and the elderly do not exist. [...]
[...] The Policy Making Cycle: Problem Evaluation Problem Definition Identifying Response Implementation Evaluation of Options Selection of Policy Options (Hylton et al 2001) This model is a good example of policy making because it is constantly evolving and identifying problems and attempting to rectify them. The problem with the model is identifying what is a problem, and how serious does it has to be? This will have to be done prior to the implementation of the policy. Setting Objectives and Priorities: The main objective is to breakdown barriers to participation. [...]
[...] Question the local community to find out what sports they want to see in their sports centre and anything that they feel is hindering their participation. Review after nine months to see if any change in revenue. Targets for second year: Begin implementation of the half price entrance on one specific day. Inform all the local school by telephone that they can pay to use the facilities on allocated time slots at a subsidized rate. Review again half way through the year to see if any slight modifications are needed for next year. [...]
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