Our Ambition & Approach

Our approach

Diversity of opportunity

People’s reasons for being active and for participating in sport are not always predictable – they are as varied and complex as people’s lives. They are not static; they change over time. Diversity of opportunity is needed if we are to enable sport in Wales to thrive.

This means moving away from thinking we can be certain about the future, assuming we know how to motivate people to take part in sport and measuring success based solely on numbers.

Making an impact

Instead, we need to collect evidence to continually improve what we do and to demonstrate the impact that we are making. While there are certain patterns that can be observed and evaluated to inform our work, we need to accept that this will never be an exact science.

In recognising this, we will need to work in a very different way. We will need to take time to involve, understand and share insight to inform the development of agile and responsive opportunities that are accessible and applicable to all.

We are evolving

Our approach in the way that we work, the way that we talk and the way that we engage is evolving. We need to become comfortable with uncertainty and being able to work with clear intent, rather than absolute instructions, and we need to be guided by the following principles:

• People’s reasons for being active and motivations for participating in sport are highly varied, never entirely predictable and are likely to change over time.
• We must put people at the heart of what we do, resulting in variable and flexible opportunities to be active and participate in sport – a move away from ‘one size fits all’ programmes.
• The opportunities available need to change over time, adapting to the feedback from those who would like to be involved in them as well as those already participating.

Our Pledge

We will:

• Learn together - Constantly exploring, testing and reviewing.
• Deliver together - Sharing outcomes, nurturing open and honest relationships, providing robust feedback, constantly improving performance.
• Celebrate together - Recognising our shared success through effective partners.

By:

• Acting with integrity - Understanding and respecting each other’s culture and values. Promoting equality and diversity.
• Adding value - Ensuring the optimum mix of support, challenge, investment, skills and expertise to achieve our shared outcomes.
• Encouraging innovation - Welcoming new ideas and approaches and supporting ambition and fresh thinking. Not being afraid to feel uncomfortable.

Sport Wales Investment Framework

In order for sport to thrive we will need to invest resources differently.

We will align our collective resources and identify opportunities to strengthen partnerships. We will work collaboratively to develop a flexible resource model. This will enable us to better meet the differing needs of partners and respond quickly to new challenges.

We will use all of our resources – investment, services and people – thoughtfully, responsibly and with maximum benefit in mind, guided by the following principles:

1. Prevention
   Incentivise positive action to encourage regular physical activity for everyone, prioritising groups who currently take part less than average, contributing to a healthy, active, more equal and successful nation.
2. Long term
   Encourage future thinking, innovation and managed risk. Balancing the short and long-term needs.
3. Integrated
   Partners evidencing the wider benefits and impact of sport.
4. Collaboration
   Encourage partnership working and joint resourcing.
5. Involvement
   Involve a range of people in the design and development of work.