The Olympic host boroughs have fallen further behind the rest of London than they were in 2012, a London Assembly report has found.
The gap has widened in terms of income and sporting participation, despite the pledge of the games to leave a lasting positive impact on the area.
Five years on, what hurdles does the East End still have to clear to catch up with other parts of the city? In the five years since the London 2012 Olympic Games, the host boroughs have become relatively less sporty and less well-off compared to the rest of the city.
The 2012 bid promised that the Games would provide infrastructural improvements that would help these host boroughs – comprised of Barking and Dagenham, Greenwich, Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest – catch up with the rest of the capital.
Instead, it has been found that these growth boroughs have fallen further behind, with the disparity increasing in the areas of income, education and, more worryingly, sporting participation. The gap has widened by 1.7% in levels of recommended activity, 1.2% in people doing no sport whatsoever and 1.7% in Year 6 obesity levels.
Though stressing that the report represented ‘a mixed picture of progress’, the London Assembly, who compiled the information, acknowledged the trends were deeply concerning.
Navin Shah, London Assemblyman and head of the Regeneration Committee, said: “It is concerning. I can imagine that people who live in, for example, North London, might not have been directly positively impacted by the Games; but it is shocking that the boroughs and communities living on the doorstep of the Olympic Village are not benefitting in terms of sport.
“It is a problem. I’m sure there is no silver bullet but the first issue has to be affordability of the venues, which is preventing people from using them; maybe it requires a greater level of communication, publicity and so on”
“East London provides a diverse community of different origins and that is why I think reaching out is important.” This message is echoed at the grass roots. Chris Willetts, Tower Hamlets Youth Sport Foundation Manager, said: “The Olympic promise that we won the bid on in 2005 was on the back of getting young people into sport and activity, particularly young people in this area of London. “We saw a spike in activity after the Olympics, but it has been very hard to maintain that after the Games.”
Much has changed in the five years since London 2012, but it appears there are still significant hurdles to be overcome in order to reignite this Olympic dream.
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HeadlineOlympic Legacy? Host boroughs fall behind rest of London
Short HeadlineOlympic Legacy? Host boroughs fall behind
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The Olympic host boroughs have fallen further behind the rest of London than they were in 2012, a London Assembly report has found.
The gap has widened in terms of income and sporting participation, despite the pledge of the games to leave a lasting positive impact on the area.
Five years on, what hurdles does the East End still have to clear to catch up with other parts of the city? In the five years since the London 2012 Olympic Games, the host boroughs have become relatively less sporty and less well-off compared to the rest of the city.
The 2012 bid promised that the Games would provide infrastructural improvements that would help these host boroughs – comprised of Barking and Dagenham, Greenwich, Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest – catch up with the rest of the capital.
Instead, it has been found that these growth boroughs have fallen further behind, with the disparity increasing in the areas of income, education and, more worryingly, sporting participation. The gap has widened by 1.7% in levels of recommended activity, 1.2% in people doing no sport whatsoever and 1.7% in Year 6 obesity levels.
Though stressing that the report represented ‘a mixed picture of progress’, the London Assembly, who compiled the information, acknowledged the trends were deeply concerning.
Navin Shah, London Assemblyman and head of the Regeneration Committee, said: “It is concerning. I can imagine that people who live in, for example, North London, might not have been directly positively impacted by the Games; but it is shocking that the boroughs and communities living on the doorstep of the Olympic Village are not benefitting in terms of sport.
“It is a problem. I’m sure there is no silver bullet but the first issue has to be affordability of the venues, which is preventing people from using them; maybe it requires a greater level of communication, publicity and so on”
“East London provides a diverse community of different origins and that is why I think reaching out is important.” This message is echoed at the grass roots. Chris Willetts, Tower Hamlets Youth Sport Foundation Manager, said: “The Olympic promise that we won the bid on in 2005 was on the back of getting young people into sport and activity, particularly young people in this area of London. “We saw a spike in activity after the Olympics, but it has been very hard to maintain that after the Games.”
Much has changed in the five years since London 2012, but it appears there are still significant hurdles to be overcome in order to reignite this Olympic dream.
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