MP campaigns for grassroots sport

Macclesfield MP, David Rutley, pledged his support for grassroots sport and recreation at the inaugural Parliamentary Sports Fair on Speaker’s Green at Westminster.

The sports fair, organised by the Sport and Recreation Alliance, showcased sports related All Party Parliamentary Groups in Westminster to raise awareness about how physical activity can help combat some of the major health and social problems facing the UK.

The cost of health related conditions associated with inactivity, including obesity and diabetes is costing the nation £7.4bn each year. In November 2015, a survey revealed that 79% of people believe that the government should do more to support grassroots sport. Local community sport and recreation clubs and facilities work hard, alongside charities, programmes and initiatives, to help make a difference to the physical and mental wellbeing of the community.

To help David champion grassroots sport in Macclesfield, the Sport and Recreation Alliance has launched Get Your Kit On – A Guide to Grassroots Sport and Recreation. The guide is an online resource that is a hub of key information, contacts and resources to enable members of parliament to engage in Westminster debates as advocates for grassroots sport and, at a community level, support and promote local clubs with their activities. It can be found at: http://www.sportandrecreation.org.uk/policy/the-alliance-in-parliament/get-your-kit-on-grassroots-guide

Speaking about the Parliamentary Sports Fair, David said: “It is important that more people become active in Sport and Recreation, both in Macclesfield and nationally. The health and well-being benefits are clear and I congratulate the Sport and Recreation Alliance for hosting this successful event, and for launching Get Your Kit On to help Parliamentarians become champions of grassroots sport within their constituencies”