The scheme title "Places People Play" will be delivered by Sport England, in partnership with the British Olympic Association (BOA) and the ParalympicsGB with the backing of London 2012 and the London 2012 Inspire mark.

The £135 million initiative has been brought about the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) last month which saw sport lose 30 per cent of its annual budget but receive a huge increase in lottery funding to negate the loses and fund this project.

It looks to fulfill the promises of a lasting legacy that London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe, who was present at the announcement, made to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Singapore five years ago when London was awarded the Games.

Robertson told insidethegames: "I am delighted to be making this announcement as this is the cornerstone of a grassroots legacy from hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

"It delivers on the bid pledge of enabling more people of all ages and abilities to play sport and with more Lottery money being invested in facilities, volunteering and protecting and improving playing fields, there will be opportunities for everyone to get involved."

There have been suggestions that the £135 million is not enough to cover the costs involved in the initiative but Robertson stated that the amount of money is a reflection of tough economic times.

"Obviously if we had double the money, we would see double the results," he said.

"But we all know the difficult economic backdrop to this and in the circumstances; I think the money is a clear reflection of the Governments' strong commitment to sport."

The majority of the money will go towards upgrading sporting facilities across the country; recruiting, training and deploying 40,000 sports leaders as the next generation of sports volunteers to organise and lead grassroots sporting activities and creating new sporting opportunities and challenges such as a new coaching course scheme called Sportivate for teenagers and young adults.

There will also be ongoing consultation with disabled people and those who support them on how to focus some additional investment with at least £8 million of the total budget set aside for tackling the barriers the disabled face when they want to play sport as well as making sure that every element of this programme works for disabled sportsmen and women too.



Coe, said: "When we bid for the Games in Singapore in 2005, we said that we would use the power of the Games to inspire young people to take up sport.

"Places People Play will harness the inspirational power of the Olympic and Paralympic Games to promote sport across the country to leave a lasting legacy of sporting facilities, trained volunteers and more people participating in sport."

Sport England's chief executive, Jennie Price, said: "We can't all be Olympians or Paralympians, but with great local facilities, inspirational sports leaders on the ground and sporting challenges to suit everyone, we can all be part of the mass participation legacy of the Games.

"In developing Places People Play, we wanted to bring both the Games and grassroots sport to life in communities across the country ensuring that, in challenging times, sport receives the investment and attention it needs at a local level."

BOA chairman Colin Moynihan, said: "The innovative programmes being introduced today will do exactly that, and the beneficiaries will be the generations of young athletes, coaches, parents and volunteers throughout our country who will see their lives enriched by the positive lessons, values and choices they make through sport.

"That is why it is so important that we, as partners, come together and work collaboratively in making these programmes successful."

ParalympicsGB chief executive Phil Lane, added: "We know that the performance of the ParalympicsGB team on home soil has the potential to inspire many more disabled people to get active and involved in sport.

"Places People Play will help them do just that in their local community.

"We welcome the additional £8 million investment in disability sport to make sure this happens."

Richard Lewis, the chairman of Sport England, has written an exclusive blog on the new scheme.

To read it click here. 

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]