Regional Sport and the 2012 Games

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The London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games provide a real opportunity for regional partners and individuals to harness sport's unique capacity to inspire and motivate people, transforming lives, communities and organisations. Our ambition is that by 2012 and beyond, we will see a significant increase in the levels of sport participation and the numbers of regional athletes in Team GB and Paralympic GB, as well as increased access to sporting opportunities.

As a region, our aims are:

• A significant increase in the level of participation in sport across the whole population
• A strengthened sports infrastructure that provides opportunities for the achievement of sporting excellence at every level and for every individual by providing continuous development pathways for participants, appropriately skilled coaches, trained and motivated volunteers, accredited local clubs and high quality accessible facilities
• A transformation in perceptions of the region as a place to do high performance sport by attracting overseas teams to train in North East England in the lead up to the 2012 Games, with a longer view focused on the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow

Get Moving!

The region's 12 local councils are working, through their Community Sports Networks, to increase participation in sport and physical activity. Visit your local sports or leisure centre to see what activities and local clubs are available.  You can find your local centre by visiting www.activeplaces.com or log on to your local council's website to see what activities and clubs are available. Alternatively visit the County Sports Partnership website at www.sportengland.org/support__advice/county_sports_partnerships.aspx 

World Class Training Facilities

The region boasts a number of world class sporting facilities for a wide variety of sports. From playing football at St James' Park in Newcastle to canoeing on the Tees Barrage in Stockton, the region is host to a plethera of sporting facilities ideal for any Olympic team preparing for the 2012 Games.

Twenty regional venues are working collectively to attract overseas teams to train in North East England in the lead up to the 2012 Games. To read more about this, download the Pre Games Training Camp (PGTC) factsheet or check out the national PGTC guide at http://trainingcamps.london2012.com . Or to see you can be involved in the many sporting activities on offer, visit your local PGTC venue.

Click here to view the regional Pre Games Training Camp brochure

Sport England

Sport England are responsible for providing services and funding to sport in England. Sport England and One North East are working together with the London 2012 sponsors to implement their national sport participation and excellence programmes for the region.

In addition, Sport England is working with One North East and London Organising Committe for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) to roll out the London 2012 Games Time Volunteering Programme. A range of partners from the voluntary sector are working collectively to increase and broaden the pool of sports volunteers and to provide the appropriate training so that they have the necessary skills for 2012 and beyond.

Register your interest in becoming a Games Times Volunteer and find out about other ways you can get involved and volunteer in the region at www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteering

To find out more about Sport England go to www.sportengland.org

Personal Best

Personal Best is a pre-employment programme inspired by London 2012. Through the provision of engagement trainging and volunteering, the  programme will act as a 'stepping stone' to new work opportunities for those individuals that take part.

The regional Learning and Skills Council are rolling out the Personal Best programme -which delivers an Event Volunteering Qualification thats acts as a stepping stone to new work opportunities for long term unemployed adults. 

Download the Personal Best factsheet to find out further details regarding the programme.