Clubbing together for extra Dragon Sports in the Vale

Young people who attend out of school clubs in the Vale of Glamorgan will soon have the chance to enjoy playing extra sports after Clybiau Plant Cymru teamed up with the Vale Council’s Dragon Sport team.

Twenty staff from Clybiau Plant Cyrmu boosted their sporting knowledge after receiving Dragon Sport training at the Colcot Sports Centre in Barry, and are now fully equipped to add athletics to the range of activities on offer for local children.

The organisation, which helps set up, develop and support out of school clubs across Wales, already had a bag of Dragon Sport golf equipment to hand out to Vale clubs, and have now been given an athletics bag so that local children can try to become the next Usain Bolt or Jessica Ennis.

Kevin Morgan, from Clybiau Plant Cymru, said: This is a good opportunity for individual clubs to participate in the Dragon Sport programme. Clubs in the Vale receive an equipment bag we have been given by the Dragon Sport team on a weekly basis then pass it on to another. It also gives children in the clubs the opportunity to participate in sporting activities they may not have tried before.

Dragon Sport is a Sports Council for Wales initiative funded by the National Lottery which is designed to offer seven to 11-year olds fun and enjoyable sporting opportunities with suitably-sized equipment. It focuses on eight key sports rugby, football, netball, hockey, golf, athletics, tennis and cricket. The flagship scheme also aims to recruit and train volunteers to provide Dragon Sports, just like the staff from Clybiau Plant Cymru.

While the staff were being trained inside the sports centre, more than 50 children from local out of school clubs were already getting sporty out on the astroturf, as the Vale’s Dragon Sport assistant Pete Hardwick explained: We provided a range of activities so that the boys and girls could get a taste of the fun they can have by getting involved in Dragon Sport. They all had a great time and I hope that they continue to enjoy playing sport for many years to come. I’d also like to thank the volunteers who helped make the day a big success, including members of the Vale’s under 14 cricket team.

You can find out more about Dragon Sport in the Vale by calling 01446 704820

Photograph: While the staff from Clybiau Plant Cyrmu were receiving their training, children from local out of school clubs were trying out the eight Dragon Sports, including golf.