Written evidence submitted by Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust
1) Overview
1.1 Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) is a registered charity delivering a diverse range of premier leisure, health and fitness, entertainment and cultural provision across fifteen venues in Doncaster.
1.2 The Trust was established in 2011, also has a trading subsidiary (Doncaster Conferencing Catering and Events) and a Training Academy.
1.3 DCLT are great advocates in the role that Sport, Culture, Physical Activity and leisure can play in realising a number of social objectives that align with key local, regional and national priorities, namely.
1.4 The below case studies exemplify some of the collaborative work currently being undertaken by DCLT to realise these.
2 Case study 1: Cycling For Health
2.1 DCLT have provided a stepping stone approach into cycling by improving people’s physical activity levels and fitness, providing a diverse range of cycling programmes, delivering guided bike rides across the borough and sign posting to borough wide cycling opportunities to sustain activity levels and participation.
2.2 DCLT’s Cycling for Health 2016/17 programme saw the engagement of a number of hard to reach groups including: Peoples Focus Group (Peer Support Group predominantly for people with Mental Health issues), New Beginnings (Substance Misuse Rehabilitation), Coral and Emerald Lodge (Inpatient and Rehabilitation and Recovery Units).
2.3 In total 2,854 attendances were registered and a 93% Satisfaction rate was yielded. Scott Elliot was one of the participants on the scheme, here is Scott’s story.
2.4 Bankrupt, divorced and depressed is how Scott Elliot, aged 49, from Doncaster described himself before he rediscovered a love of cycling thanks to a scheme run by DCLT. Now, with a real focus, Scott shares his experience of turning his life around as a result of the sessions run by DCLT’s cycling guru Chris Green.
2.5 “The economic crisis had a huge impact on my business, I was a self-employed civil engineer, but my business folded, my marriage broke up and I found myself suffering from depression. “It’s hard to imagine so quickly things can spiral out of control. One minute you are running a business and everything is going well and the next you have nothing and you are struggling to function. “Depression is horrible and when you are in its grips you can feel like there is no hope. I was extremely low when I it was suggested that I attend one of Chris’s cycling sessions for hard to reach groups and I really didn’t know what to expect.
3 Case study 2: Aiming High Children with Disabilities Short Breaks Programme
3.1 Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) have provided holiday clubs for 85 young people for a Short Breaks scheme. The children and young people on the Short Breaks Scheme have either Autistic Spectrum Disorder or challenging behaviour associated with other impairments such as severe learning disabilities or have complex health needs including those with disability and life limiting conditions.
3.2 Here is there story:
3.3 Children in Doncaster have benefitted from the Short Breaks scheme which enabled them to take part in a number of school holiday activities and events and provide alternative respite for parents, guardians, siblings and carers.
3.4 Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) worked with Doncaster Council to provide these opportunities for children with disabilities and their families.
3.5 Jon Whiteley, deputy chief executive of DCLT said: “We are extremely pleased with the feedback we’ve received from parents whose children took part in these short break sessions. “During the summer we held a number of activities at Hatfield Outdoor Activity Centre and have also run a number of Saturday Clubs at the site. “The children have been able to take part in a range of water and land based activities and we know that while they have learned new skills, they have also had a great deal of fun. “We’ve also run a bike awareness course and sessions in archery and fencing at Rossington Community Sports Venue.”
3.6 As well as the holiday activities, Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust are also running swimming sessions for all family members at The Dome on the last Sunday of each month at a reduced rate.
3.7 Riana Nelson, Assistant Director of Partnerships and Operational Delivery, Learning and Opportunities, said: “The Short Breaks scheme is a fantastic way for young people to get together and meet new friends. Our Short Breaks Team produces an activities timetable for each school holiday to offer extra support to parents and carers. The timetable includes a variety of activities such as arts and crafts, sports sessions as well as family activities such as cinema, theatre and days out. “We are working closely with Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust to provide this much needed additional support for families and children in our borough.”
4. Case study 3: Over 6000 children in Doncaster are taking part in weekly Learn to Swim sessions
4.1 Swimming is a vital life skill for children and Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) are at the forefront of delivering Learn to Swim sessions to thousands of children from across the borough each year.
4.2 There are currently 6400 children attending sessions across DCLT’s nine pools every single week and last year saw the Trust issue more than 14000 swim awards.
4.3 DCLT is proud to have received the Swim England National Learn to Swim Provider award in 2017 and is working to add on even more sessions and increase the number of people who can swim in the borough.
4.4 The Trust has forged good links with established with competitive swimming clubs which resulted in more than 300 children from the DCLT learn to swim programme taking part in trials for competitive swimming in 2017.
4.5 School swimming - DCLT works with 90 schools each year who bring their pupils for education swimming lessons. Some 3000 children every year take part in these education lessons and for some it is their first experience of being in a pool. Our instructors work with them to provide basic water safety and water confidence skills with the ultimate goal of teaching them how to swim.
4.6 Kraig Kelly, head of leisure at DCLT said: “Were very proud of our Learn to Swim programme and have seen a real increase in levels of attainment in education swimming with more children than ever reaching the national curriculum standard. “Swimming is a key life skill and our Learn to Swim programme offers structured learning, following ASA’s National Plan for Teaching Swimming, and equips people whatever their age with the skills they need to swim confidently and stay safe in the water.”
4.7 Deaf Friendly Swimming Classes - In 2017 DCLT launched a programme of Deaf-friendly swimming lessons for children and young people in the borough. The sessions, which are being delivered in partnership with the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS), run every Tuesday at Rossington Community Pool.
4.8 Kraig Kelly, head of leisure at DCLT said “We are delighted to be working with NDCS to offer these swimming lessons for children and young people who are Deaf or have hearing difficulties and it has been great to see that they are being so well received. “The activities are suitable for all abilities from beginners to confident swimmers and give people the chance to take part in fun activities and learn new skills, delivered by fully qualified swimming teachers.”
4.9 Disability Swimming Sessions - A ‘water baby’ from Doncaster is benefitting from an exciting initiative which aims to get more children with physical disabilities swimming.
4.10 Lauren Kemp (5), who has a form of cerebral palsy which affects her left hand side with muscle weakness and tightness, is taking part in specialist one-to-one swimming lessons at Armthorpe Leisure Centre specifically for children with a physical disability.
4.11 The charity, Level Water, worked with DCLT to offer free swimming lessons for disabled children across the borough. They fund lessons for children aged 4-11 with a physical, hearing or visual disability who cannot swim ten metres.
4.12 The swim teachers at DCLT centres received specialist disability training from Level Water and then delivered the lessons to the children as normal but the cost of the lessons was covered by the charity until the child is ready to move on and join back in with mainstream lessons.
4.13 Lauren, who lives in Bessacarr, is now going from strength-to-strength in the pool and really enjoys her lessons. Michelle, Lauren’s mum, said: “Lauren does find walking, balance and coordination more difficult than her peers as her muscles do get very tight which can cause her pain and to fall over more than other children her age. But it is important to keep Lauren as active as possible, particularly as she has growth spurts as her muscles tighten even more as she grows. “Lauren has always been a water baby and we just felt that swimming is a really important life skill regardless of whether you have a physical disability or not. We did put Lauren in mainstream swimming lessons but I could see she was falling behind and we didn’t want her to lose her confidence so when we came across these one-to-one swimming lessons it was ideal.
4.14 “Her instructor Tony, who has been brilliant, is specially trained and because she gets his full attention she is coming on leaps and bounds. It has boosted her confidence and gives her real enjoyment. From the very first lesson Lauren was enthralled by Tony and focusses on everything he says during her lessons and because he communicates with her on her level she puts her all into it. Lauren just beams from ear to ear!
4.15 “It’s fantastic that these lessons are funded by Level Water which makes a big difference to us and we are grateful to them and DCLT for giving us this opportunity to help Lauren with her swimming. I have already recommended the sessions to other families I know who have children with a disability and I would encourage others to give them a try.”
4.16 Alex Barrett, aquatic development manager at DCLT, said: “We are really pleased to be holding these swimming lessons which are really beneficial to children with physical disabilities who want to learn to swim. “Swimming is a great sport, but it can be ineffective or unsafe for children with disabilities to learn in mainstream groups. It is fantastic for us to be working with Level Water which provides our instructors with specialist training and funds us to offer small group and one-to-one lessons until a child is ready to join a mainstream class. “Swimming is such an enjoyable way to keep fit and active and most children love being in the water. This should be no different for children with a disability so do get in touch if you would like to find out more.”
5. Case study 4: Inclusive Hub Pilot - Inclusive Sport revolution hits Doncaster
5.1 An exciting new initiative to improve the inclusivity of sport across Doncaster so more people can get active and involved was launched earlier this year.
5.2 Inclusive Revolution is a partnership between Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT), 4 ALL and Yorkshire Sport Foundation, which aims to create inclusive physical activity hubs across the town where everybody can experience and enjoy sport no matter of their ability, age or if they have additional needs.
5.3 Two top Para athletes - Danielle Brown MBE, GB medallist for archery and GB wheelchair basketball player Helen Freeman officially launched the initiative at an event which welcomed schools, community groups, sports coaches and local organisations of all ages and capabilities. They were able to take part in a variety of sport taster sessions, including football, fencing and archery, before guests heard from Danielle and Helen as well as speakers from the other organisations involved. Workshops also took place highlighting the best inclusive practices.
5.4 Jon Whiteley, deputy chief executive of DCLT, said: “We are pleased to be working in partnership with 4 All with the support of Yorkshire Sport Foundation to help make sporting activities even more accessible. The hubs, which will be based across the borough in Rossington, Adwick and our flagship site The Dome will provide opportunities for people with learning difficulties, mental health and other needs to take part and try something new practically on their doorstep. “There can often be a number of barriers that prevent people, especially those with additional needs, from getting involved in sport and fitness activities and the aim of this programme is break down those challenges and perceptions and demonstrate how anyone and everyone can get involved.”
5.5 Inclusive Revolution follows on from a number of successful activity programmes that have already been running at three DCLT sites, Rossington Community Swimming Pool, Rossington Community Sports Village and at The Dome, specifically aimed at engaging and including people who may not have felt able to get involved in sport before.
5.6 Added Jon: “This new partnership hopes to build on this work and provide more inclusive sporting activity across Doncaster with the hope of making sport and fitness more accessible which can only be a good thing for the individuals concerned but also for Doncaster as a whole as people get more active.”
5.7 Danielle Brown MBE, double Paralympic gold medallist archer and co-founder of 4 All, said: “There is no reason why everybody can’t enjoy sport and the benefits it brings. Working alongside Yorkshire Sport Foundation and DCLT is enabling us to make a much bigger positive impact on our community and we are very excited to launch the hub initiative.”
6. Case study 5: Alternative Education Programme - Working in partnership to improve young people’s educational attainment, improve attendances and reduce exclusions
6.1 Doncaster Culture and Leisure Trust (DCLT) have been working with St Wilfrid’s Academy for a number of years to deliver an alternative education programme, offering support to those children and young people who really need it.
6.2 St Wilfrid’s Academy is an additional provision school that supports students from Delta Academies and Doncaster Local Authority schools across Key stage 1 to 4.
6.3 Jon Whiteley, deputy chief executive of DCLT, said: “Working with children and young people who, for a variety of reasons, are unable to access mainstream curriculum education and require a bespoke package, can be both challenging and rewarding. “We deliver a number of core activities that aim to build skills and improve employability for the young people. “Our programme focuses on essential life skills, blended with some accredited learning e.g. Customer service, first aid, rookie lifeguard training and food safety. We also focus on employability skills such as CV assistance and career planning and provide an activity week which is great for team building and boosting confidence. “For us engaging with the children and young people as soon as they walk through the door is key. We want them to learn from the programme and enjoy it at the same time. “As our programme is based in our leisure venues the students can take part in a variety of activities which help them to focus on health, fitness and well-being as well as learning educational and essential life skills.”
February 2018