Swindon MP sees impact of Lionesses victory at first hand

By Barrie Hudson - 9 August 2022

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  • North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson, right, during his visit

    North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson, right, during his visit

North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson visited Draycott Sports Camp to see how England's historic Lionesses were already inspiring the next generation of sportswomen.

The camp is based at Oakhurst Primary School and provides sports activities for school children throughout the holidays. 

During his visit the MP saw first hand how excited everyone was by the Lionesses' European Championship victory, and how the achievement was inspiring them to take part in sport.

Increasing the number of children and young people being active has been a key issue for Mr Tomlinson during his time as an MP. In particular, he has campaigned for money raised by the ‘sugar tax’ to be used so that school facilities can be made available to local sports and activity groups in the evenings and through school holidays. 

Mr Tomlinson said: "The lionesses have made the country incredibly proud with their brilliant performances over the last few weeks - it is amazing to see how that success is inspiring so many young girls and laying the foundation for even more success in the future.

"On a wider note, with research showing that 2.1 million children and young people - 29 percent - are doing fewer than 30 minutes of physical activity a day, anything that inspires or encourages young people to take up sport and be active can only be a good thing."

Mark Draycott, who established Draycott Sports Camp, said: “We have really been banging the drum for girls’ football with our girls’ teams, and really trying to grow interest. 

"The Lionesses’ achievement is fantastic, and we are already seeing the positive effect with more and more girls requesting to play football.”

 

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