750 young people from Manchester to take part in StreetGames

StreetGames Festival at Sport City in Manchester

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Hundreds of young people from disadvantaged communities across the North West will be in Manchester today to have fun showcasing their sporting abilities at the StreetGames Summer Festival. Just one year before the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, StreetGames, in partnership with Coca-Cola Great Britain, is inspiring young people to change their lives and communities through grassroots sport.

By bringing sport to the doorsteps of some of the most deprived areas of the country, national charity StreetGames is helping to deliver the legacy of London 2012 today. The programmes encourage young people to stay out of crime, build their confidence, be more active and change their lives and communities for the better by putting their energies into sport and dance.

Today’s Festival is hosted at Sportcity where young people from around the region will take part in everything from athletics to skateboarding to football.

The North West Festival is one of a series of similar events taking place in major cities across the UK and which are part of Coca-Cola Great Britain and StreetGames’ three year partnership that aims to connect 110,000 young people with sport in Great Britain in the run up to London 2012 and beyond.

Thousands of young people’s lives have been changed for the better through StreetGames including Moses Pande, aged 18 from Wyttenshawe. From a deprived part of Manchester, Moses has been attending his local StreetGames project for eight months – his involvement has helped him get onto an NVQ course to obtain sports coaching qualifications.

He said: “Through StreetGames I have now been given a chance to gain training and qualifications – I hope this will enable me to gain work in the future."

As well as supporting region-wide festivals like today’s in London, Coca-Cola Great Britain’s funding is helping StreetGames grow its network of ongoing sports projects at a local level, creating a programme of 300 Neighbourhood Festivals and delivering the first ever StreetGames Sport for Change Training Academy to reach over 6,000 coaches. 120 StreetGames projects are spread across England and Wales, with a Scottish launch planned for later in 2011.

Liz Lowe, Citizenship Manager, Coca-Cola Great Britain, said: “StreetGames is a fantastic charity that brings sport in to the lives of young people regardless of their background or circumstances right on their doorsteps. The Festival taking place today is a celebration of all of the projects across the North West and we’re really happy to be supporting StreetGames in encouraging young people to get involved and get active. With the 2012 Games just one year away, we hope even more young people are inspired to take part and reap the many benefits sport offers, from better health to increased confidence and new friendships.”

Jane Ashworth OBE, CEO of StreetGames, added: “With the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games around the corner, StreetGames is improving the sporting landscape for young people living in disadvantaged communities. We want to ensure that everyone is able to benefit from the Olympic legacy regardless of their social circumstances.

“Our work with Coca-Cola Great Britain is improving the quality of doorstep sport through training and education. This gives coaches, volunteers and mentors the skills to grow and sustain sports participation in deprived communities.”