START water polo programme offers £500 grants to support clubs

Swim England is offering a series of grants up to £500 to support water polo clubs across the country in providing a pathway to attract new players to the sport.

The START Water Polo programme is funded by Swim England and is designed to increase the number of young water polo players at club level.

Applications are open to any Swim England affiliated club or section, which intends to deliver new sessions of water polo.

The funding can be used by clubs to invest in new equipment – including junior balls, ball carriers and junior caps – provide Level 1 coaching qualifications and hire additional pool space.

Each project should clearly demonstrate how the funding will be used to increase numbers into classes for the desired Stages.

New opportunities

Applications will be assessed on the level of impact of the project and the potential to attract and retain high numbers of new participants into structured water polo sessions.

Andy Fuller, Swim England Water Polo Development Manager, said: “In previous years, this funding has been used to give clubs a valuable boost to their water polo programme.

“We look forward to helping many more clubs to recruit new faces as we continue to focus on providing opportunities for young players to remain in the sport.”

The application deadline is Monday 14 October 2019, after which time a panel will assess applications and select those that will receive the investment.