Aspiring athletes in Preston invited to apply for sports sponsorship

The largest athlete programme of its kind in the UK, the GSF awards provide a range of support including free gym membership, bursaries, physiotherapy, lifestyle mentoring and advice on mental health and wellbeing. A total of £1.4m in bursaries and free gym memberships will be made available to communities up and down the country.

The announcement follows a recent survey conducted by OnePoll on behalf of GSF that found providing funding and support to the next generation of athletes is seen as a major way to spread opportunities in local communities. Access to facilities and athlete health and wellbeing services is similarly key.

Supporting sport is seen as important by the people in the North West – 74% of those surveyed said taking part in competitive sports benefited young people’s physical health, discipline/focus (68%) and social/teamwork skills (66%). However, 54% of respondents cited a lack of finance / funds as one of the biggest barriers to young people taking part in competitive sport.

Meanwhile, a quarter say that a career in sport offers great opportunities to younger people from under privileged backgrounds. That’s ahead of public sector jobs like teaching (17%) and NHS (19%) – or private sector jobs like finance (18%).

And 84% of survey respondents admitted the success of UK athletes, teams and sportspeople is also important to generating a sense of national pride.

Furthermore, younger people in the UK were more likely than older people to identify a career in sport as a way to make a living (30% of 18 to 24’s and 38% of 25 to 34’s versus just 22% of 55 to 64 year olds).

George Kneen-Cookson, GLL Community Sport Manager, said: “This programme provides us with the perfect platform to nurture a new wave of local sporting heroes. We are committed to continuing to support athletes to achieve their goals and aspirations, widening and deepening the opportunities for local communities through sport. It’s always an honour to see the positive impact these awards have on local individuals and to promote the far-reaching benefits that sport offers.”

The GLL Sport Foundation (GSF) was launched 17 years ago by leisure operator and charitable social enterprise GLL, with the aim of supporting talented young athletes with funding and practical help.

The deadline for applications is 20th February 2025. For more information and an application form, please visit www.gllsportfoundation.org