School sports share lottery money

Some of the new facilities will go to help girls get involved in sport

Fourteen schools across Wales are to get a share in £7m of lottery cash to improve their PE and sports facilities.

The money from the New Opportunities Fund is part of an overall £48m it is ploughing into schools and communities this year.

The lion's share - more than £3m - is going to four projects in Caerphilly, with St Cenydd Comprehensive getting £1.6m of that

A four court sports hall, dance studio and multi-gym will be built there.

The school, with 1,150 pupils, has a significant number of youngsters with disabilities, and headmaster David Eynon said they would all be able to make use of the new sports hall, due to open next January.

"We're absolutely delighted with the new facilities which will be shared by the whole community," he said.

"Sport and physical activities are a very important part of our school life."

Caerphilly is also to get money to create centres of excellence for both netball and hockey at two sites at Lewis Girls School and Blackwood Comprehensive School.

In Pembrokeshire, two awards totalling over £500,000 will be used to build an artificial turf pitch with floodlighting at Greenhill School in Tenby and refurbish six tennis courts at Milford Haven Comprehensive.

In Conwy, Ysgol y Creuddyn will get a facelift with a £765,000 allocation. The money will go to build a four-court sports hall which it is hoped will benefit women.

Enid Christie of Conwy Council said:" We will be able to offer a much wider range of activities like aerobics and badminton which we hope will lead to increased participation among women and girls in sports."

Schools and centres receiving grants

Glyncoed Comprehensive, Blaenau Gwent

Blackwood Comprehensive, Caerphilly

St Cenydd Comprehensive, Caerphilly

Lewis Girls School, Caerphilly

Ynys Hywel Residential Outdoor Activity Centre, Caerphilly

Ogmore Centre Trust, Vale of Glamorgan

Ynysawdre Comprehensive, Bridgend

Borfa House and Rhossili Activity Centre, Swansea

Milford Haven Comprehensive, Pembrokeshire

Greenhill School, Tenby, Pembrokeshire

Welshpool High School, Powys

Ysgol Maesydderwen, Powys

Ysgol y Creuddyn, Conwy

Ysgol Tywyn, Gwynedd

The fund's New Opportunities for PE and Sport Programme is the single largest lottery investment coming to Wales. All the schools awarded on Friday have been agreed as priorities for sport investment.

"Local authorities across Wales have submitted bids that will take up all of the money left in the pot and we are assessing these as quickly as possible so that all areas of Wales can benefit," said Tom Davies, board member for the fund in Wales.

The funding will create state of the art amenities designed to have a lasting impact and give youngsters and communities in Wales the chance to opt for a healthier lifestyle.

The New Opportunities Fund is the biggest of the National Lottery good cause distributors funding health, education and environment projects across Wales.