Five funders propose post Olympic endowment fund to support grassroots sports
Howard Lake | 24 July 2012 | News
Five grantmakers have created an alliance call The Legacy 2013> Partnership to campaign for a post Olympic fund to support grassroots sports.
London Funders, Comic Relief, Community Development Foundation, City Bridge Trust and Trust for London plan to create an endowed fund made up of both government and corporate money that will use sport as a catalyst for community development. They are using a feasibility study produced by London Funders to lobby Government asking for £60 million to be endowed as a match initiative that will raise additional money from the private sector.
The campaign has been inspired by the LA84 Foundation which was set up after the Los Angeles Olympics. The Foundation is still helping deprived communities 28 years later.
Speaking at today’s launch, Anita DeFrantz, Olympian, IOC member and President of the LA84 Foundation, said: “Why does the spirit of the Games need to last only four weeks? It can create a legacy that can last forever”. She acknowledged that good work had been done on grassroots sports legacy, but noted that funding largely runs out by 2017.
A Legacy 2013>Fund would not be a direct grantmaker to grassroots sport organisations: instead it would fund existing experienced grantmakers to do so. It would start in London and roll out nationally, “bringing benefits to parts of the UK that have not been touched by London 2012”.
Alison Seabrooke, Chief Executive, Community Development Foundation, said: “The really exciting thing about this is the difference it will make to the aspirations and achievements of whole communities. We have developed and managed funds like this before and have seen the impact they can have on grassroots groups. It only takes a small amount of money to make a difference and what a perfect time to seize the opportunity of the Olympic to engage and inspire some of the most deprived people in our communities.”
The Legacy 2013> Fund feasibility study has received support from a wide range of other organisations including Capital FM’s Help a Capital Child, CCLA Investment Management, City Bridge Trust, East London Community Foundation, Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, Leyton Orient Community Foundation, London Youth, and Media Trust.
www.legacy2013fund.org.uk
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About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.