Active Meadowlands, Coventry

Find out more

• Background

  Prior to involvement from Barclays Spaces for Sports, the ‘Meadowlands’ area was a derelict piece of land linking an inner-city area with a park in the Radford Diamond area of Coventry – one of the most economically deprived parts of the UK.

  Anti-social behaviour was a problem in the area, and Radford Diamond suffered from a severe shortage of community sporting facilities. With fewer than 50% of the local adult population owning a car, travelling to sports centres was difficult.

  We aimed to create a place where local people could enjoy sport, interacting with each other and becoming involved with the project.

  Active Meadowlands opened in November 2005, providing a range of sports facilities and a multi-use games area.

• Our contribution

  In partnership with Groundwork Coventry, we helped fund the building of multi-use games areas, a grass amphitheatre and a range of other facilities.

  We have also awarded a grant to the project to support a three-year development plan ensuring the future sustainability of the site, and helping cover the salary of a Development Officer to organise and run regular activities.

   

• How the site benefits the community

  As well as providing much-needed sports facilities for the people of Radford Diamond, Active Meadowlands has also brought employment, inspiration and community activities too.
  
  Local volunteers are benefiting from formal coaching training, significantly improving their career prospects. Sports teams use the area frequently, and the site is also in demand from community groups representing the diverse local population.
  
  Much of the anti-social behaviour in the area was being caused by a gang made up of mainly young men aged 17-21 years; its members were involved in serious crimes and disruptive activity throughout the Radford/Coundon neighbourhood. Many of the local youth intervention agencies had failed to engage or rehabilitate them after trying on a number of occasions. Then a few key members began frequenting the ‘Active Meadowlands’ sports project having been signposted to the area by their case workers and the Police. At the gang’s request, and through contact with the Meadowlands staff, a ‘borrowing’ programme was established that allowed the young men to borrow equipment so that they could undertake their own sporting activities on the site. This helped to instil a level of trust between the group and Meadowlands staff and developed their leadership and footballing skills.
  
  Some of the members then went on to become volunteer coaches. They ran regular sessions with three groups of young people at the site, in preparation for a city-wide tournament called the ‘Unity Cup’. They helped young people get to the various venues and organised the necessary equipment. All three teams reached the semi-finals of the tournament, with one entering the final played at Coventry City Football Club’s Ricoh Arena. The 11-13 year old team went on to win the Unity Cup. The gang has now dispersed but some of its former members are still volunteering at the Meadowlands site and are taking their first National Governing Body qualifications. 
  
  Active Meadowlands was named the best sports site in the West Midlands area in the 2008 BBC Power of Sport Awards. Groundwork is now using the project as a role model, implementing the same objectives at sites elsewhere in Coventry.