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Articles

Community sports development for socially deprived groups: a wider role for the commercial sports sector? A look at the Flemish situation

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Pages 1392-1410 | Published online: 01 Dec 2010
 

Abstract

Since the early 1990s, specific community sports programmes have been set up in Flanders (Belgium) to stimulate participation among socially deprived groups. With only a limited involvement of the traditional sports sector, alternative providers (e.g. youth welfare sector) became active in organizing local initiatives, such as neighbourhood sports. However, despite the multiplicity of sports providers, to date, inequalities in sports participation still exist. The present paper investigates whether or not the commercial sports sector can contribute in developing a sustainable community sports offering for socially deprived youth. Based on examples regarding its involvement in so-called ‘street sports’, it is argued that the commercial sector entered the domain of community sports providers by using highly accessible activities for this youth. It is yet to be determined if, and under which circumstances, this involvement offers opportunities for a wider role of the commercial sports sector in community sports development.

Notes

 1 European Sports Charter, art. 1.i and art. 4.2.

 2 CitationVan Tuyckom and Scheerder, ‘Sport For All?’.

 3 Vlaamse Regionale Indicatoren 2009.

 4 CitationElchardus and Smits, Anatomie en Oorzaken van het Wantrouwen.

 5 Vlaamse Regionale Indicatoren 2009.

 6 CitationTheeboom et al., Handboek sportbeleidsplanning; CitationVanlandewijck and Van de Vliet, ‘Sportgedrag van Personen met een Handicap in Vlaanderen’.

 7 Coalter, A Wider Role for Sport.

 8 CitationVan Lierde and Willems, ‘Hoe goed zit je bij een sportclub?’.

 9 CitationPutnam, Bowling Alone; CitationVerweel, Janssen and Roques, ‘Kleurrijke Zuilen’; CitationBreedveld and van der Meulen, ‘Vertrouwen in de Sport’; Scheerder et al., ‘Sport en Sociale Cohesie’; CitationVan der Meulen, ‘Alle Menschen werden Brüder’.

10 Delnoij, ‘Ze zijn gewoon niet te binden’; Duyvendak and Hurenkamp, Kiezen voor de Kudde.

11 CitationRutten et al., Jeugdsport en Morele Socialisatie.

12 CitationElling, Theeboom and De Knop, ‘Sociale Integratie in Sportbeleid in Nederland en Vlaanderen’.

13 CitationKoolen, De Meest Gestelde Vragen over Allochtonen en Sport; CitationKruissink, ‘Van padvinderij tot pretpark, van Vechtsport tot Volleybal’; Citationvan der Gugten, ‘De Sport als Aangrijpingspunt voor Criminaliteitspreventie’; CitationVan Dijk, ‘De rol van sportbeoefening bij de preventie van criminaliteit'.

14 CitationVan Geelen, ‘Hedendaagse Ontwikkelingen Binnen het Sportbeleid in Nederland’.

15 CitationCoalter, A Wider Role for Sport.

16 CitationBailey, ‘Youth Sport and Social Inclusion’; CitationElling, Ze zijn er niet voor gebouwd.

17 Hylton and Totten, ‘Community Sports Development’, 13.

18 CitationTheeboom and De Knop, ‘Inventarisatie binnen het jeugdwelzijnswerk in Vlaanderen’.

19 CitationDe Knop and Walgrave, Sport als Integratie, Kansen voor Maatschappelijk Kwetsbare Jongeren; CitationDe Mol and Knops, ‘Jeugd en Sport’.

20 CitationScheerder et al., ‘Sport en Sociale Cohesie’.

21 CitationHoyng, De Knop and Theeboom, ‘Functies en Betekenissen van Sport’.

22 CitationTheeboom et al., Sport en maatschappelijke achterstelling.

23 Theeboom and de Maesschalck, Sporten om de Hoek.

24 CitationHylton and Totten, ‘Community Sports Development’, 113.

25 In the context of the UK the concept of ‘neighbourhood sport’ is being referred to as ‘doorstep sports’. These sport initiatives have been brought under the StreetGames national network since 2007. Partners include Sport England, the Football Foundation, the Premier League, the Co-operative network. For more information see www.streetgames.org. Concerning the neighbourhood-education-sport (Buurt-Onderwijs-Sport) approach of the Netherlands, refer to www.nisb.nl.

26 Scheerder, Tofsport in Vlaanderen.

27 CitationSmits, Maatschappelijke Participatie van Jongeren.

28 Scheerder, Vanreusel and Pauwels, Breedtesport in Vlaanderen Gepeild.

29 CitationDelnoij, ‘Ze zijn gewoon niet te binden’; CitationDuyvendak and Hurenkamp, Kiezen voor de Kudde.

30 Citationvan Bottenburg, ‘A Second Wave of Running’.

31 CitationScheerder, Tofsport in Vlaanderen.

32 CitationDe Knop et al., ‘Implications of Islam’; CitationWalseth and Fasting, ‘Islam's View’.

33 Elchardus and Glorieux, De Symbolische Samenleving.

34 Smith and Westerbeek, ‘Sport as a Vehicle’.

35 CitationScheerder, Vanreusel and Pauwels, Breedtesport in Vlaanderen Gepeild, 225–61.

36 CitationElchardus and Glorieux, De Symbolische Samenleving; CitationBennet, ‘Subcultures or Neo-Tribes’.

37 De Knop and van der Poel, ‘Het Sportbeleid in Nederland en Vlaanderen’.

38 CitationCoalter, ‘Leisure Studies’; CitationLeGrand, ‘Theory of the Government Failure’.

39 CitationLedwith, Community Development.

40 CitationCoalter, ‘Sports Clubs’.

41 CitationTaylor, Equal Opportunities, 60.

42 Smith and Westerbeek, ‘Sport as a Vehicle’.

43 CitationHaywood, Community Leisure and Recreation.

44 CitationJackson, Totten and Robinson, ‘Evaluating Projects’.

45 CitationDe Knop and van der Poel, ‘Het Sportbeleid in Nederland en Vlaanderen'.

46 CitationClarke, Cochrane and McLaughlin, Managing Social Policy.

47 CitationTheeboom et al., ‘Sport en Jeugd’, 370.

48 CitationSmith and Westerbeek, ‘Sport as a Vehicle’.

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