Norfolk Village Games

Thousands of villagers in rural Norfolk can look forward to new opportunities to play sport on their doorstep after an innovative project was awarded £577,701 of National Lottery funding by Sport England.

Norfolk Village Games secured the investment from the £10 million Rural Communities fund, which was launched after Sport England research revealed that two thirds of the local authorities with the lowest sports participation rates are in rural areas.

Norfolk Village Games, which was selected from over 500 applications through a competitive national process, will see:

• Over 100 village teams, involving over 9,000 people, competing in village games over three years
• A wide range of sports offered including softball, tennis, netball, football, badminton, tug of war and archery
• More than 20,000 people taking part in high-quality taster sessions in villages with coaching and ongoing support to encourage sustained participation
• 1,000 new members of sports clubs
• 140 new coaches

The project will be delivered by the Norfolk’s County Sport Partnership, Active Norfolk.

Laurie Hull, Active Norfolk’s Director, said: “Securing funding for our project is a huge opportunity to bring Norfolk together and get more people playing sport in rural communities. The sports on offer will be a lot of fun but there will also be a competitive edge which will hopefully spark some competitive rivalry between villages. We’ve seen it working well in the west of the county and with Sport England’s help, we’re going to take it to the rest of rural Norfolk.”

Norfolk Village Games has been granted the Inspire Mark, the badge of the London 2012 Inspire Programme. The London 2012 Inspire programme recognises innovative and exceptional projects that are directly inspired by the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Dates for the 2012 Village Games

South Norfolk and North Norfolk

• 10th June 2012

Breckland and Great Yarmouth

• 17th June 2012

Broadland and West Norfolk

• 24th June 2012

Norfolk Village Games 2012 Finals Day 

• Sunday 15th July 2012

Expression of Interest

Any villages interested in being part of this exciting project, should click here and complete a short 'expression of interest' form.

If you have any queries about the Village Games contact:

Ellen Vanlint on ellen.vanlint@activenorfolk.org or telephone 01603 731566.

Would you like to receive Village Games updates?

Regular updates will be circulated via the Active Norfolk 'Village Games' newsletters. You need to register via the Active Norfolk website to receive these. You can do this by completing a short form via www.activenorfolk.org/register Don't forget to tick 'Village Games'

Already registered to receive Active Norfolk newsletters?

If you already receive Active Norfolk newsletters remember to update your record to receive Village Games information by ticking the 'Village Games' option as well.

* For more information on the West Norfolk Village Games visit:

www.intervillagegames.co.uk