Rhona Brankin: Sportscotland helps to provide sporting opportunities for children who have disabilities in mainstream schools in several ways, including funding the BT top play top sport programme, the sportsability programme, the Royal Mail's ready, willing and able for sport programme and a Scottish disabilities sport resource pack for teachers, leaders and coaches.
Rhona Brankin: Yes. In my speech in the debate following question time, I will make an announcement about the number of school sports co-ordinators currently in place. School sports co-ordinators have a central role in developing programmes of physical activity and sport for youngsters with disability. That is one of the specific areas that school sports co-ordinators have been asked to look at. They will...
Rhona Brankin: I am sure that my colleagues would agree that sport and physical activity is a very important part of the curriculum, whatever the needs and abilities of the youngster concerned. In the case of youngsters with physical disabilities, specific, tightly targeted programmes—sometimes involving physiotherapists—are necessary. Those would be seen as an important component of personal learning plans.
Rhona Brankin: I am delighted to open this Parliament's first full debate on sport and to make the link between sport and our vision of achieving a fairer and more just Scotland in the 21 st century. We are determined to do that by putting social justice and equality of opportunity at the heart of our agenda, delivering a fairer and more just society—a Scotland where everybody matters. That is why, in...
Rhona Brankin: I would like to get further into my speech. Sport must have a strong and meaningful partnership with health and education, in particular. It must look to itself, to be certain that it is doing everything in its powers to eliminate all forms of discrimination and exclusion. We are all aware that sport can divide people: not in the sense of healthy competition and partisanship, but through...
Rhona Brankin: I thank Fergus Ewing for his kind words of support. Decisions about funding are taken by sportscotland, which is receiving an extra £1.5 million through the comprehensive spending review, as announced by Sam Galbraith. The Scottish Executive's aim is to increase the participation in sport of people of all ages and abilities, and to encourage young people to remain active in sport as they...
Rhona Brankin: Not just now. Sportscotland has recently commissioned two pieces of research that relate to that target in the wider context of social inclusion. The first piece of research was commissioned jointly with the Scottish Executive and focused on the role of sport in regenerating urban deprived areas. The research report will be published in the near future and the result should help to develop...
Rhona Brankin: As Nicola Sturgeon would expect, social inclusion depends on active, involved communities. To answer her point about Pollokshaws sports centre, Glasgow City Council went through a detailed process of facilities planning to decide the best local facilities for sport and recreation in Glasgow. Having discussed the matter with the council, I am convinced that it came up with the best model....
Rhona Brankin: If Lloyd Quinan does not mind, I must move on. While facilities are important, the top priority is to engage with people. As I said, the outcome of the comprehensive spending review for sport announced by Sam Galbraith gave a major boost to the development of youth and school sport. He announced a three-year £8.1 million package of measures that target youth sport to develop the school sport...
Rhona Brankin: No, I am running out of time. We favour enhancing the links between supporters and their clubs for the benefit of both. I propose to raise the matter at the next meeting of the football partnership, which I chair. Sport has a vital role to play in promoting social inclusion. The Scottish Executive is giving a strong lead to sports organisations, local authorities and others bodies that can...
Rhona Brankin: No. The allocation of tickets for the Scottish Cup Final is a matter for the Scottish Football Association.
Rhona Brankin: The creative industries make an enormous contribution, both culturally and economically, to the lives of people and communities throughout Scotland, and have been identified as one of the key areas to be addressed in the development of the national cultural strategy. The Scottish Arts Council will have an important role to play, in conjunction with Scottish Enterprise, in developing the...
Rhona Brankin: The priority areas, in which Scots are already making their mark worldwide, are music, publishing, games software and crafts, and increasingly digital media, design and architecture. Currently, the creative industries account for approximately £5.3 billion in the Scottish economy and contribute 70,000 jobs.
Rhona Brankin: We are at the end of the consultation period on the national policy on architecture. We will be publishing a response to the consultation in the summer, and the policy document will be in place early in the new year.
Rhona Brankin: The weir on the River Almond at Cramond is not a scheduled ancient monument and there are no plans to afford it such statutory protection. Historic Scotland can make ancient monument grants to help with the repair of unscheduled monuments, but there is heavy demand on the grants programme and the budget for the next three years is already committed. There are, however, other potential sources...
Rhona Brankin: Since 1993, 31.56% of the total National Lottery grant awarded in Scotland has been to organisations whose headquarters are located in the Glasgow City Council area. 16.68% has been awarded to organisations whose headquarters are located in the Glasgow Kelvin constituency area.
Rhona Brankin: Historic Scotland has investigated the concerns raised by the Ness District Fishing Board in their submission to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. A written response was submitted to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency which was taken into account by them in determining the application for a discharge consent. The discharge consent was issued by the Scottish Environment...
Rhona Brankin: Since 1991, sportscotland has invested some £550,000 in a Team Sport Shinty Co-ordinator and two local development officers specifically to develop the grass roots of the sport. In addition to the £500,000 Lottery Sports Fund monies which has been awarded to improve shinty’s facilities, £15,000 was approved in February of this year for the Camanachd Association from the Lottery Fund...
Rhona Brankin: I understand that the games are open to commercial organisations including multi-national and national companies and local businesses.
Rhona Brankin: I understand that some 10,000 competitors are expected to participate in the World Corporate Games.