Last updated at 09:52, Thursday, 24 January 2013

THE legacy of the 2012 London Olympics will give rise to a brand new £150,000 sports facility in Barrow.

Sport England’s Inspired Facilities Olympic and Paralympic Legacy Fund has today announced an investment of £2.3m to 46 sports groups across the North West.

Furness Academy, in Park Drive, will use their £150,000 share of Cumbria’s £590,662 to build an athletics track, for use by the whole community.

The academy is one of 10 sports groups in Cumbria benefiting from the windfall, raised by Sport England through National Lottery funding.

Barrow Island ARLFC, based at Ostley Bank, has been awarded £50,000 to demolish and rebuild changing rooms, allowing them to open up the facility to the public as well as club members.

The number of facilities supported by Inspired Facilities now totals more than 1,000.

The investments improve local facilities, create new venues for grassroots sport and in some cases allow local clubs to buy the facilities they use.

Sport England’s chairman, Richard Lewis, said: “This National Lottery investment is helping us deliver a lasting sporting legacy in the area from last year’s successful Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“With so many clubs in Cumbria having benefited from this fund already and building on the success of last summer, this is the legacy people want for their local community.”

Active Cumbria senior manager, Bruce Lawson, said: “This latest funding announcement is fantastic news for sport in Cumbria.

The grant awards for these 10 organisations are supporting facility project developments valued at over £1.8m. What’s even more encouraging is to see the overall investment from this and previous Inspired Facilities awards.”

Last week Sport England launched a new £40m fund to help local sports projects, as part of £493m committed to 46 sports over the next four years.

• Full story in tonight's Evening Mail

First published at 16:38, Wednesday, 23 January 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk