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Schools from the nine School Games areas did their regions proud at the Sussex School Games Winter Finals, which took place on 6 March at Lancing College.

The Winter Finals is an annual seasonal competition focusing on team sport. It features just four disciplines – football, hockey, netball and rugby sevens – with the best teams drawn from Sussex schools competing for regional and individual honours. Over 400 children took part on the day.

Active Sussex and the Sainsbury's School Games Local Organising Committee are delighted to announce the final results for first placed and runners-up and the overall standings for each region are as follows:

Year 5/6 Girls Football

Winner: West Green Primary School (Crawley) – pictured
Runner-up: Sacred Heart Catholic Primary (Hastings & Rother)

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Sport England has announced 'favoured' areas for the latest round of its Inspired Facilities fund. In Sussex the areas are: Hastings, Adur, Eastbourne and Mid Sussex.

The latest round of Inspired Facilities is now open for applications and will close on 29 April. Billed as "an easier way to access facilities funding", 70 per cent of the fund is earmarked for community and voluntary organisations – including sports clubs – who can apply for grants worth between £20,000 and £50,000. Local authorities, statutory bodies and education establishments such as schools, can apply for grants between £20,000 and £150,000.

Due to the popularity of the programme, and based on experience from earlier rounds, Sport England has chosen to favour applications from certain areas and sports that have not received significant funds in the first three rounds. These two additional priorities will only come into effect when Sport England is considering a small number of projects on the cusp of being funded.

In Sussex, the four local authority areas to be 'favoured' are Hastings, Adur, Eastborune and Mid Sussex. 

Needless to say, this does not mean that if an application is received from one of these areas that it will automatically be successful. It still has to be a very good project and will be assessed in the same way as all other applications.

Further details on local authority areas yet to submit a successful application can be downloaded here: inspiredfacilities.sportengland.org

Read on and apply

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Hockey international Alex Danson is the special guest at the Sussex School Games Winter Finals, Lancing College, on 6 March.

The 27-year-old was joint top scorer in the London 2012 hockey side and her opening goal in the play-off against New Zealand helped Team GB to Olympic bronze. She made her international debut at just 16 and was named in the FIH World All Stars Team in 2011.

What do you love about your sport?

It's fast, physical and requires a high level of skill – but most of all I love playing in a team, competing alongside my team mates.

What has been the highlight of your hockey career so far?

Standing on the podium at London 2012 was incredible and a moment I will never forget. We had worked so hard for so long to get there. It was a combination of excitement, relief and total pride to share that moment with my friends and team mates.

What's the biggest setback you've faced and how did you overcome it?

I have dislocated my shoulders on a number of occasions, often close to major tournaments. Being injured is a very isolating time as you are so used to be around training with all your friends. Suddenly you are training alone and desperately trying to rehab over short time periods. The best way I have dealt with it is to plan methodically, work closely with my physio and set very clear, measurable targets.

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Badminton England's Andy Dyke and Adur and Worthing's Tammy Waine

National Governing Bodies of sport made use of a quick-fire format to link with charities, local authorities, schools and FE reps at the Active Sussex Network meet on Tuesday. The event was a chance for Sussex NGB reps to outline their new plans, to be rolled out from April.

Sport England is investing £493m into 46 sports

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The Triangle, Burgess Hill will be the venue for the next Active Sussex Network on 12 February, supported by Active Susssex gold tier partners Freedom Leisure and the University of Chichester.

Active Sussex member organisations have been quick to sign up and have ensured this is a sell-out event.

Chris Coleman from Sport England will open the day, reporting on December's Active People Survey results and how Sussex fares against the national picture. Coleman will also present a sketch of the new four-year development plans for national governing bodies of sport, due to kick in from April. Delegates will have an opportunity to discuss how they can work together to make the plans work locally, followed by a networking lunch.

The day will be wrapped up by Sadie Mason, Active Sussex CEO (pictured), who will present Active Sussex's four-year strategic framework, building on the strong post-Olympic spirit within community and grassroots sport.

Active Sussex Network, 12 February, Triangle Burgess Hill. If your organisation is not yet a member of Active Sussex and would like to attend future network sessions, find out how to join here 

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Archery is one of six new activities on offer to disabled teenagers in Brighton and Hove

Disabled teenagers in Brighton and Hove will have more opportunities to get involved in sport after local charity Amaze won £78,761 of National Lottery funding from Sport England's Inclusive Sport Fund.

Amaze works with parents of disabled children in the city. Its leisure incentive 'Compass Card' for young people with significant additional needs, funded by Brighton & Hove City Council, has had a major impact in expanding leisure opportunities amongst a group that has a number of barriers to participation. In addition to discounts and free entry to leisure facilities, the Compass Card provides an expanding list of special needs-friendly classes called Compass Card Activities.

The new funding, which is spread over three years, will help Amaze launch six new Compass Card Activities aimed at 14-19 year olds. Amaze will work with local partners Adventure Unlimited, Brighton & Hove City Council, the Crew Club, Extratime, Freedom Leisure and Sussex Central YMCA to deliver the new activities.

“We’ll be launching a range of exciting new Compass Card Activities for teens: archery, climbing, kayaking, trampolining, a fitness class and a monthly activities club,” said Amaze CEO Rachel Travers. “Keeping fit and maintaining an interest in sport can be difficult for any teenager, but teens with special needs can face additional challenges. Our new activities, together with practical support to help teens access them, will make a real difference.”

Welcoming news of the distribution of Sport England Inclusive Sport Fund funding across the UK, Britain’s greatest Paralympian, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson said: “This funding will go a long way to helping those inspired by the outstanding performances of our Paralympians this summer to get out and try sport for themselves. It’s fantastic to see such a wide range of organisations benefitting – all of them focused on helping more disabled people to discover how much sport has to offer.”

The new Compass Card Activities will start to be introduced in Brighton and Hove from April, with most up and running by the summer. The scheme will be launched at Brighton and Hove's Takepart International Festival of Sport, Preston Park, on 22 June 2013.

Amaze website

TakePart International Festival of Sport

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