London 2012 Board Member visits Bisham Abbey

Mr Allen went to look at how the legacy for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is starting to take shape.

Bisham Abbey has been selected as the venue to showcase the South East’s sporting legacy from the Games, titled ‘Community Meets Elite Sport’. Charles’ visit offered the opportunity for him to have a tour of the venue to discover how the sports based at Bisham Abbey are working to leave a lasting legacy for sport in the region following London 2012.

One of Sport England’s National Sports Centres, Bisham Abbey is home to the South East region of the English Institute of Sport (EIS), England Hockey, the WIN Tennis Academy, FAB Football and a prestigious training venue for over 20 different sports.  As well as an elite training facility, Bisham Abbey is also open to the general public, with 128,000 visits by the local community last year to use the gym and pay and play facilities. 

Yesterday’s tour was particularly focused on squash, tennis, badminton, hockey, football and rowing, where sporting projects are being used to engage the community in the Games. Charles took part in each of the sports demonstrations with children and adults from the local area and learnt more about how Sport England and its partners on site are using the power of the elite Olympic and Paralympic Games sport to inspire community groups, both young and old to participate in sport.

The visit formed part of a wider tour around the South East, encompassing sport, education, culture, economy and health. It was organised by the South East Partnership for London 2012 in conjunction with Leeds Castle, Maidstone Council, Holiday Inn Guildford, Surrey Sports Park, Ashford & St Peters Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Bisham Abbey and Sport England.