Sport England has launched its £160 million Movement Fund for clubs, community groups and grassroots organisations, offering grants, crowdfunding pledges and resources through a single application route. At last, the funding process has been encouraged to move freely, although nobody has confirmed whether it is fit enough to pass the eligibility check.
The fund replaces the Small Grants Programme and Active Together fund. Applicants can now approach one doorway instead of entering the traditional funding village, where every building contains a slightly different form and one locked cupboard marked supporting evidence.
Sport England says the fund is intended to help people facing barriers to physical activity, with awards between £300 and £15,000 available for suitable projects. This is welcome news for local groups, provided they can explain how their six traffic cones, two whistles and gazebo will tackle long lasting inequality.
Clive Jogworth, Commissioner for Recreational Paperwork, said the application could now be completed by anyone with an internet connection, a free evening and the emotional resilience of a senior procurement officer. The Commissioner is fictional. The evening is not.
The fund seeks positive experiences, community involvement, environmental sustainability and good use of public money. These are admirable ambitions. They are also the sort of ambitions that make a volunteer pause before describing a badminton club as a multi stakeholder platform for inclusive racquet based wellbeing.
The single application point is meant to let Sport England assess the best route itself, rather than forcing applicants to guess which grant has been designed for their particular shade of community need. This removes one of the great British sporting traditions: losing at form filling before reaching the changing room.
The Movement Fund arrives alongside a pilot Movement Hub, gathering existing tools and resources in one place. It is intended to make support easier to find, which is a brave decision from an organisation that appears to have stored it behind several respectable paragraphs and a door labelled resources.
Public money should come with accountability. It simply need not demand a thesis from a netball coach who wants to replace a bench. The application has stretched, warmed up and entered the arena. It is now waiting for a panel to decide whether the form displays sufficient community spirit.
Sport England has put the funding process on a fitness programme. The paperwork is ready for its personal best, while the club is still waiting to learn whether its gazebo has demonstrated leadership potential.
Real story: Sport England.
