5. 4. Statement: The Welsh Government Response to the Independent Review of Sport Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:07 pm on 3 October 2017.

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Photo of Rebecca Evans Rebecca Evans Labour 5:07, 3 October 2017

I thank you very much for those questions. I think you’re right in the sense that the review itself did recognise that there is some work for Sport Wales to do in terms of its relationships with stakeholders and how they manage those relationships. So, one of the recommendations for Sport Wales within the review was for it to consider how it manages those relationships with the national governing bodies and local authorities so that the level of check and challenge is proportionate and balanced with providing advice and added value. So, hopefully, that will address some of those issues in terms of an understanding of the role of Sport Wales and how it relates to its partners.

I also like the recommendation in the report that suggests it considers adopting a formal relationship with further education and higher education for gathering insight, commissioning research, and discussing areas for collaboration as well. I think that’s a really positive step as well.

I agree: sport should be for everyone. So, we shouldn’t have a situation where it’s only those people who’ve been supported by sporty parents from a very young age and guided into a particular sport that are able to take advantage of all the knowledge and the pathways that are available. Actually, it should be for everyone. So, when there is young talent identified, be it at school or in a local club, for example, those pathways should be there to take them if they want to, and if they have the skills and desire to, all the way through to the elite pathway as well. And the national governing bodies do have those really strong, robust pathways in place as well. So, the aim, really, is to ensure that, as we get more people more active, those people will have that opportunity to rise up the ladder if they so wish.

In terms of the definition, I hope I’ve been able to provide some clarity in the statement today that we’re talking about sport and physical recreation, so active recreation, as well. I don’t expect sport or Sport Wales to start getting people active who live completely sedentary lives at the moment. I don’t think that’s either fair on them as an expectation, or even realistic or achievable. Where I see the role there, I see a role there very much for Public Health Wales and the NHS more widely, so looking at the role of the directors of public health within the health boards and so on. I think there are roles there, using those short interventions and so on, to be having conversations to get people along the first step of that journey.

So, I hope that there’s a clear, I suppose, role set out there for Sport Wales. But, in terms of the platform that you referred to between sport and the health sectors needing to be much more clear in future, I think that the purpose behind the response, really, today was to mandate Public Health Wales and Sport Wales to work more closely together in future, so to work together to inform our ‘healthy and active’ strategy in terms of the actions that need to be undertaken and by whom, and what the outcomes we expect of them are as well.

I had the opportunity to meet with the incoming chair of Public Health Wales yesterday, and I took that opportunity to stress the importance that we put on the role that Public Health Wales has in terms of increasing physical activity, but particularly amongst those who are the furthest from activity at the moment.