Presentation by StreetGames' Kerry McDonald and Ceris Anderson

1. Doorstep Sport Clubs
What they are and how they work
for us

2. What are they?
 Fun, exciting and vibrant place for young people to play sport
–aged over 13yrs
 Clubs will offer a menu of different sports and different ways
to play those sports
 Clubs will attract new participants- on average 50 per year
and 20 in subsequent years (plus a drop off rate of approx.
30%) = 118 in total per club. But we expect that there will be
variations, some will be bigger some much smaller
 The club will aim to attract 20-30% of the young people as
regular attendees (once a week)
 Clubs will be a destination in their own right but will also
encourage participants to go to other points of play- helping to
establish a sporting habit for life

3. 10 Doorstep Sport Operating Principles

4. DSC Pilot Testing
What did we do?
What have we learnt so far?

5. 8 Testing Areas
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Wigan
Hull
Birmingham Derby/Derbyshire
Herts
Bristol
East London

6. DSC Testing
Testing Period:
• July 2012 – March 2013
• Definitely a challenge…….
• But one worth doing…………
lots of good practice and
learning

7. 8 Testing Areas
 Aiming to set up 45 Pilot DSCs
 16 different lead organisations:
– Local Authorities (4), Third Sector (8), Leisure Trusts (2), Local Sports
Club (1), Rugby League Foundation (1)
 Using a variety of venues:
– Leisure Centres, Community/youth
centres, MUGAs, ATPs, Parks, Schools, a Prison and a Fire Station
 Providing a diverse range of sports:
– Football, cricket, rugby
league, trampolining, dance, badminton, basketball, fitness, handball, net
ball, boxing, angling, athletics, swimming, judo, volleyball, table
tennis, tennis, golf, cheerleading, cycling/BMX………and more

8. Headline Data
 40 out of the 45 DSCs originally planned
are up and running
 The Pilot DSCs have:
– Delivered 1,063 sports sessions
– Generated 11,573 attendances
– Attracted 2,067 participants
 24% females
 37% BME
 3% disabled
 76% are aged 14-25 years
 Participant postcode mapping shows
majority live in areas of high deprivation

9. The DSCs
 Definitely not ‘one-size fits all’
 Many different approaches and
solutions
 Varied approaches to Multi-sport

10. The DSCs – Multi-Sport Offer Examples
No. Multi-Sport Offer DSCs
1 A single sport session that introduces new sports at the end of this session. 11
Leading into a multisport offer of single sport sessions
2 A number of sports already offered as separate clubs/sessions brought together 1
to form a multi-sport offer – using outreach programme to gain new
participants, aimed at one identity – the activities can be at different venues
but all sports opportunities promoted as one club package
3 New multi-sports activity – mixture of sports in one session 23
4 Same venue, same time each week but different sports happen at each session 2
(or blocks of sessions)
5 Different sports offered in the same venue, but happening on different nights 8

11. Learning from the Trailblazers

12. Participant Feedback

13. Participant Feedback
 97% said their club is good/very good
 80% said they have been taking part in sport
more regularly
 Majority getting ‘a lot’ out of their sessions
– 66% learnt new skills ‘a lot’ and 31% ‘a little’
– 66% had got better/improved skills ‘a lot’ and 29% ‘a little’
– 80% had enjoyed being active ‘a lot’ and 18% ‘a little’
 Doorstep Sport approach is critical - like best:
– 78% it’s cheap
– 74% It’s fun
– 72% The coaches
– 70% Easy to access

14. This club is brilliant, we don’t
have anything to do usually that
I really enjoy coming. I our parents will allow us to go to
like being part of a
team and joining in with
others my own age The reason I come here is because a
lot of my friends come here
We all live close and we all
get to play badminton together It’s fun and I learn things each time I come
Friendly like home It has made me healthier and I love
seeing friends each week
It helps me de-stress I love coming to this club and the fact that
it is girls only, it has made me think that I
would like to try other things too
It’s fun and I’ve learnt a lot

15. Key Success Factors
 Committed Project Co-ordinator
 Easily accessible and familiar venue
 The ‘right coach’ to create a
fun, friendly atmosphere
 Word of mouth, taster
sessions, links, partnerships, import
ance of friendship groups
 Volunteer involvement
 Variety of offer
 Competition/events
 Female only opportunities
 Retention incentives

16. StreetGames Support
 One-to-one support viewed positively
 Specialist DSA support helpful
 Training workshops valued
 Activator courses and Doorstep Sport
Level 2 qualification - particularly valuable
 Financial and monitoring systems –
deemed user friendly
 Demand for additional training and the
sharing of information and good practice

17. Challenges/Issues
 Project Co-ordinator input ‘in kind’
 Some DSCs struggled to shape
their offer and attract a core of
members
 Some DSCs impacted via delays in
waiting for equipment or partners
 Some DSCs impacted by facility
management apathy
 Introduction of charges
 Gender
 Age profile

18. Challenges/Issues
 Challenging timescales of the Pilot - not always being clear on what is
needed, when…..
 Challenges of being involved in a pilot, things changed….
 Lack of major launch or branding
 Need for clear communication

19. 10 Principles
 Useful framework……BUT
 During early testing efforts mainly
focused on setting up the ‘right’ sessions
and providing the ‘right’ offer
 Very few gave thought to sustainability
elements during this early testing period.
 Some of the Principles can be
developed simultaneously, others act in
sequence

20. Summary - Key Findings
 DSCs are attracting the intended target group
 Feedback from participants is overwhelmingly
positive
 Participant numbers and attendances
demonstrate that DSCs can be an effective
means of engaging young people in
disadvantaged areas in sport
 Some really great examples of doorstep sport
in action
 High number of EOIs (230+) to run DSCs
shows that there is high demand to run these
clubs from both local and national
organisations
.

21. Questions