The Charities Act 2006 (‘the Act’) lists thirteen descriptions of purposes that are capable of being charitable for the public benefit. The ‘advancement of amateur sport’ is included in that list.
The Act defines the advancement of amateur sport as the advancement of amateur sports or games which promote health by involving physical or mental skill or exertion. We think further clarification is needed on what this means. This document does not represent our guidance on advancing amateur sports or games; it is a consultation document. The comments we receive as a result of this consultation will help provide the framework for the guidance we will prepare for charities who wish to have aims which include advancing amateur sports or games.
We would like to encourage you to take the time to respond to this consultation. It is important that we are able to take the views of trustees, their advisors and other stakeholders into account.
Amateur sport is often used to advance a number of charitable aims. This consultation focuses specifically on when it is appropriate for a charity to adopt an aim to advance amateur sports or games as a charitable aim and what can be done by charities to advance that aim for the public benefit.
We want trustees and those who act for them to:
This consultation will help us to assess whether we need to do any further work to achieve this.
Alongside this consultation document, we have also set out an Analysis of the law underpinning The Advancement of Amateur Sport that explains the legal framework and relevant case law.
This consultation explores issues concerning:
This consultation may raise questions as well as provide answers, but we hope that the consultation process will ultimately result in more meaningful and helpful guidance.
We would like to receive comments on the consultation from those with an interest in advancing amateur sports or games, including trustees, advisers and charity employees, those who benefit from, use or support charities and those with professional expertise in charity matters.
The types of organisations concerned with advancing amateur sports or games might include:
We will also consult with other relevant regulators and government departments, representative sector professional and umbrella bodies. If you think there are other interested parties who should be consulted, please let us know.
We would like to hear your views on any aspect of this consultation. We would in particular like to hear views on the questions set out below. Some of these are general questions about the consultation as a whole, whilst others are about specific aspects of it.
Q1. Would you find it helpful if we were to define ‘sports or games’ in terms of having a body of rules or codes of playing?
Q2. Are there examples of sports or games involving physical skill but not physical exertion that promote health?
Q3. For games involving mental skill or exertion (other than games that involve a high level of mental skill such as those included in the World Mind Games) what may be needed to demonstrate the mental health benefits of regularly playing that game and the level or extent of mental skill or exertion involved for that?
Q4. What criteria do you think we should use when deciding whether what is being advanced is an ‘amateur’ sport or game?
Q5. What distinguishes a full-time amateur sportsperson, in receipt of grant funding or sponsorship, from a professional sportsperson?
Q6. Whilst the achievement of sporting success is a natural part of advancing amateur sports or games, at what point does the pursuit of success have the effect of changing an organisation so that it becomes less about advancing amateur sports or games for the public benefit (where success is an incidental by-product of that) and more about the pursuit of sporting success as an aim in itself (where charitable benefits to the public become second to that pursuit)?
Q7. Do you have any general comments or observations about what we say in annex A about advancing amateur sports or games for the public benefit? For example, when we prepare our guidance following this consultation, are there any aspects of public benefit in relation to advancing amateur sports or games you would like us to cover?
28 February 2011 Start of 12 week consultation period 31 May 2011 End of 12 week consultation period
Guidance will be published later this year.
Everyone is welcome to respond to this consultation. We would be grateful for all responses in writing, which should be headed ‘Consultation on the advancement of amateur sport’ and sent by e-mail to:
publicbenefit@charitycommission.gsi.gov.uk.
For those wishing to respond who do not have access to e-mail, responses can be sent by post to:
Charity Commission Direct PO Box 1227 Liverpool L69 3UG
Please provide us with the following standard information, in the order requested, as part of the introduction to your response. This will allow us to manage the responses and use the information more effectively as well as enabling us to keep you up to date with any progress:
The closing date for responses to this consultation is 31 May 2011.
Where appropriate we encourage you to provide evidence in support of your response. If you are a representative group, please provide a summary of the people and organisations you represent as part of your response. If you represent a charity, it would be helpful if you could state your organisation’s charitable aims.
All information contained within the responses (including personal information) may be published or disclosed in accordance with the access to information regimes, primarily set out in the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.
If you want information given in response to the consultation to be kept confidential it will only be possible to do so if it is consistent with our legal obligations. There is a statutory Code of Practice under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which public authorities must comply with. This sets out how confidential information must be dealt with. We cannot give assurances that all information will be kept confidential but we will take into account any representations made by you.
If you object to any of the information (including your personal details) which you are giving in response to the consultation being published, please say so. It would be helpful for any such objections to be supported with an explanation of why you regard the information to be confidential so that a decision can be made as to whether there are grounds for not publishing such information.
We will prepare guidance on advancing amateursport, taking into account the comments that we have received by the end of the consultation period, which will be available in an interactive web format, in addition to a downloadable PDF. We will then publish a summary of the responses to this consultation on our website alongside the published guidance in autumn 2011.
This consultation has been designed to comply with the seven consultation criteria in the Government Code of Practice on Consultation:
Criterion 1 – When to consult Formal consultation should take place at a stage when there is scope to influence the policy outcome.
Criterion 2 – Duration of consultation exercises Consultations should normally last for at least 12 weeks with consideration given to longer timescales where feasible and sensible.
Criterion 3 – Clarity of scope and impact Consultation documents should be clear about the consultation process, what is being proposed, the scope to influence and the expected costs and benefits of the proposals.
Criterion 4 – Accessibility of consultation exercises Consultation exercises should be designed to be accessible to, and clearly targeted at, those people the exercise is intended to reach.
Criterion 5 – The burden of consultation Keeping the burden of consultation to a minimum is essential if consultations are to be effective and if consultees' buy-in to the process is to be obtained.
Criterion 6 – Responsiveness of consultation exercises Consultation responses should be analysed carefully and clear feedback should be provided to participants following the consultation.
Criterion 7 – Capacity to consult Officials running consultations should seek guidance in how to run an effective consultation exercise and share what they have learned from the experience.
Respondents are invited to comment on the extent to which the criteria have been adhered to and to suggest ways of further improving the consultation process. If respondents have comments or complaints about the consultation process they should contact the address above.
If you have any further queries about this consultation, please contact:
Email: publicbenefit@charitycommission.gsi.gov.uk
Phone: 01823 345497.
1. The purpose of this consultation is to consider key issues in relation to the scope and meaning of ‘the advancement of amateur sport’, as defined in the Charities Act 2006, (‘the Act’) and what it means to advance amateur sports or games for the public benefit.
2. This consultation is primarily aimed at charities interested in advancing amateur sports or games. It is also likely to have relevance for charities concerned with promoting community participation in healthy recreation and those that provide sport or leisure facilities under the Recreational Charities Act 1958.
3. For many years charities have used sporting activities to advance a wide variety of charitable aims. For example, sport might be used for the physical education of children and young people, to relieve disability or the effects of old age, or to promote the efficiency of the armed forces. Or it might be used as a way of addressing social issues, such as juvenile delinquency, rehabilitating ex-offenders, or promoting social cohesion or religious or racial harmony.
4. Sport also plays a vital role in improving the health of the nation but, previously, charity law did not recognise the promotion of sport, for its own sake, as charitable.
5. However, in 2001, in recognition of the connection between playing sport and the benefits to physical health, the Charity Commission decided to recognise as charitable bodies that set out to encourage ‘community participation in healthy recreation’. This, for the first time, extended charitable status to organisations (such as amateur sports clubs) concerned with advancing sports that are, if practised with reasonable frequency, capable of improving a person’s physical health by making them fitter and less susceptible to disease. We published guidance, Charitable Status and Sport (RR11), aimed at amateur sports clubs, which set out detailed criteria which such organisations would have to meet if they wished to register as a charity.
6. There are also many charities set up to provide facilities in the interests of social welfare under the Recreational Charities Act 1958 which are concerned with providing facilities for playing particular sports or for other leisure-time activities. In 2000, we published guidance, The Recreational Charities Act 1958 (RR4), for organisations wishing to register as a charity under that Act.
7. The Charities Act 2006 clarified the scope of charitable aims. It lists thirteen descriptions of purposes which the law has recognised as being capable of being advanced in a way that is charitable for the public benefit. The ‘advancement of amateur sport’ is included in that list, at section 2(2)(g).
8. This means that it is now charitable to advance amateur sports or games as a charitable aim in its own right without having to show how that advances some other recognised charitable aim, such as advancing health or education.
9. The Act defines ‘sport’ as “sports or games which promote health by involving physical or mental skill or exertion”. This retains the link to the health benefits of playing sports or games. It also extends the Commission’s earlier recognition of sports or games that promote physical health to include sports or games which promote health by involving mental skill or exertion. The Act also explicitly emphasises the requirement that all charities must have aims that are, demonstrably, for the public benefit.
10. The Act also retains, at section 2(2)(m) ‘other purposes currently recognised as charitable’, the existing charitable purposes of:
11. There is a great deal of overlap between these various purposes and charities that are concerned with enabling or encouraging people to participate in sports, games or other leisure activities might have aims that fall within any one or more of those purposes.
For example, in our recent decision to approve the application for registration from Hitchin Bridge Club, we agreed the following dual aims:
“For the public benefit
The advancement of amateur sport by promoting the game of bridge for the benefit of the residents of Hitchin and the surrounding area.
The provision of facilities for the learning, teaching and playing of bridge for the benefit of the residents of Hitchin and the surrounding area with the object of improving conditions of life.”
12. Charities concerned with enabling or encouraging people to participate in sports, games or leisure activities may therefore find it helpful to read this consultation in conjunction with our guidance on Charitable Status and Sport (RR11) and The Recreational Charities Act 1958 (RR4).
13. There are also many instances where sport is used as a means of advancing other charitable purposes, such as those mentioned in paragraph 3. This consultation is not principally concerned with those sorts of charities. However, it may be the case that some of those charities are also concerned with advancing amateur sports or games or providing facilities for healthy sport or recreation and so this consultation will be of relevance for those aspects of their charitable aims. In Annex B, we have included some illustrative examples of different types of charity that might be concerned with sport, games or recreation and the charitable aims that are most likely to be relevant in each case.
14. The ‘advancement of amateur sport’ is included in the list of descriptions of purposes in the Act at section 2(2)(g).
15. Section 2(3)(d) of the Act states “sports means sports or games which promote health by involving physical or mental skill or exertion”.
16. This means that organisations generally concerned with advancing sports or games can apply to register as a charity provided that the organisation satisfies a number of key characteristics. These are:
We consider each of these characteristics below.
17. The Act does not define what is a ‘sport or game’ beyond what is in section 2(3)(d). There are some recognised sports or games that do not satisfy that definition. Similarly, there are some activities that do satisfy the definition which are not recognised sports or games.
18. Some types of activity (depending on the way in which people participate in them) could be a sport, or a game or a recreational activity. We think it important to be able to distinguish between the various sports, games and recreational activities that may satisfy the definition in the Act. Although not included in the Act’s definition we think in general a sport or game tends to involve some form of competition and a body of rules or code of playing.
For example, Wikipedia defines:
sport as “a sport is an organised, competitive, entertaining and skilful activity requiring commitment, strategy and fair play in which a winner can be defined by objective means. It is governed by a set of rules or customs. Activities such as card games and board games are classified as ‘mind sports’ and some are recognised as Olympic sports requiring primary mental skills and mental physical involvement. Non-competitive activities, for example jogging or playing catch, are usually classified as forms of recreation”.
game as “a structured activities, usually undertaken for enjoyment and sometimes used as educational tools…Key components of games are goals, rules, challenge and interaction. Games generally involve mental or physical stimulation and often both. Many games help develop practical skills, serve as a form of exercise or otherwise perform an educational, stimulational or psychological role”.
Q1 Would you find it helpful if we were to define ‘sports or games’ in terms of having a body of rules or codes of playing?
19. Participation in some sports, games or other recreational activities can take many forms. Participation might be undertaken solo, as part of a team, non-competitively or competitively, or ‘virtually’ (such as online or console games).
For example, cycling can be a means of transport, a recreational pursuit, a solo or team sport, an Olympic event, or a keep fit exercise in a gym or attached to a games console.
20. It may be that the form of participation might also be a factor to consider when deciding whether what is being advanced is:
21. The type of participation being advanced might decide what is the most appropriate charitable aim for the organisation that advances it.
Continuing with the use of cycling as an example, rather than ‘the promotion of the amateur sport of cycling’:
However, the aim of a local cycling club that provides facilities such as cycle tracks, or coaching and training, or organises competitive cycling events, would be ‘the promotion of the amateur sport of cycling’.
22. Some organisations may have a mixture of these sorts of aims.
23. The advancement of amateur sports or games is an appropriate aim for those organisations that are specifically concerned with advancing a ‘sport or game that promotes health by involving physical or mental skill or exertion’ as an ‘amateur sport or game’.
24. The sport or game being advanced must be capable of promoting the health of the participants. This can be achieved through physical skill or exertion and/or mental skill or exertion.
25. A sport or game that promotes a person’s physical health is one which, if practised with reasonable frequency, will tend to make the participant healthier; that is, fitter and less susceptible to disease. Fitness includes elements of stamina, strength and suppleness (there may be others) but it will be enough if a sport or game contributes to just one of these elements.
26. Benefits to physical health may be easier to identify and measure eg improvements to heart rate, blood pressure etc. Benefits to mental health may be more difficult to measure but might still be identifiable.
27. ‘Mental health’ can be defined in many ways. The Mental Health Foundation’s website states: “Good mental health is not simply the absence of diagnosable mental health problems, although good mental health is likely to help protect against development of many such problems. Good mental health is characterised by a person’s ability to fulfil a number of key functions and activities, including:
28. A useful definition of mental health is that used by the World Health Organisation: “Mental health is not just the absence of mental disorder. Mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”.
29. In some cases it will be self-evident that playing a particular sport or game promotes a person’s health. In other cases the link between playing the sport or game and the promotion of health may be less obvious. If it is not possible to demonstrate that a sport or game promotes health, it may still be charitable to advance that sport or game as a means of advancing a different charitable aim – see Annex B for some illustrative examples.
30. In many cases, a particular sport or game involves both physical and mental skill or exertion and promotes the participant’s physical health and mental health. Although it may not always be necessary to explore in detail the exact nature of the physical or mental skill or exertion involved in playing a particular sport or game, or precisely how a person’s physical and/or mental health is promoted, we think it is helpful to consider what each of these elements entail in order to distinguish those sports or games that promote health from those that do not.
Physical ‘exertion’
31. For the many sports or games that involve physical exertion, there are clear links between participation in the sport or game and benefits to physical health and it will not usually be necessary to produce further evidence of the health benefits.
32. Many sports or games involving physical exertion, which are capable of promoting physical health, are also capable of promoting mental health, such as, for example, where physical exercise is used in the treatment of depression. However, is not necessary for sports or games to promote both.
Physical ‘skill’
33. For sports or games that involve physical skill (rather than exertion) the link between playing the sport or game and the promotion of physical or mental health may not be so obvious, and so evidence of this may be required.
Q2 Are there examples of sports or games involving physical skill but not physical exertion that promote health?
34. The benefit to health from participating in a sport or game that involves mental (but not physical) skill or exertion may be less clear. Where a sport or game involves primarily mental skill or exertion, we think that the effect on health may be to mental rather than to physical health. However, we are interested to know if there is evidence to the contrary.
35. Assuming our understanding is correct, we think sports or games involving mental skill or exertion that promote a person’s mental health may involve:
36. It is clear from the debates in Parliament on the Charities Bill that the inclusion of sport or games involving mental skill or exertion in the definition of sport was intended, specifically, to include chess. Chess has long been played in schools as games that involve mental skill may advance the education of young people by extending and developing their mental capacities.
37. We consider that, in framing the legislation, it is clear Parliament considered that certain games involving a certain degree of mental skill or exertion were capable of promoting health.
For example: bridge is regarded as a game involving a high degree of mental skill, being one of the five component games in the World Mind Games. Bridge involves logical and lateral thinking skills, planning, memory, sequencing, initiation and other higher order functions and therefore, we are satisfied that it is a game which involves mental skill or exertion which, if played regularly, is capable of promoting health.
38. In reaching our conclusion that bridge is a sport or game which promotes health by involving mental skill or exertion, we looked at body of research1 . That research identified the potential health benefits of playing bridge, and other forms of mental activity, among seniors in lowering the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia by as much as 75%, compared to those who did not exercise their minds.
39. Other research produced to us identifies a possible relationship between the cerebral cortex and the immune system. Further research also points towards the connection between lack of mental (and physical) activity in the middle years of life and subsequent memory loss, dementia and other associated mental illnesses. We accept that there is an informed consensus of medical opinion that regular mental activity from an early age has a tendency to prevent loss of mental capacities in later life.
40. What is not clear to us is what level of mental activity is required to promote health, and over what period of time.
For example - in promoting the mental health of elderly persons, might it be considered that a lesser degree of mental rigour would be required than might be the case in younger people? In those cases, the aim of the charity, rather than being the advancement of amateur sport or games, would be more accurately expressed as ‘the relief of the effects of old age’ or ‘the provision of facilities in the interests of social welfare’ under the Recreational Charities Act 1958 for people who have need of them by reason of their age (where no, or no adequate, facilities exist).
41. Some games involving mental skill or exertion can be divided into games of skill and games of chance; some may involve elements of both. In some card games, for example, the game begins as one of chance, depending on the deal of the cards, but also involves elements of mental skill in how to play the cards, based on probabilities. Could it be said that in such cases the game involves mental skill or exertion or that the level of skill or exertion required is sufficient to be capable of promoting the participant’s health?
42. If we accept a view that any regular activity in sports or games involving mental skill or exertion is capable of promoting health, it would appear that a wider range of organisations concerned with advancing sports or, in particular, games, previously thought to be non-charitable would be eligible to apply for registration as a charity. It may be a consequence that the advancement of any game or hobby that involves some degree of mental skill or exertion (such as pub quizzes or puzzles for example) could potentially be charitable.
Q3 For games involving mental skill or exertion (other than games that involve a high level of mental skill such as those included in the World Mind Games) what may be needed to demonstrate the mental health benefits of regularly playing that game and the level or extent of mental skill or exertion involved for that.
43. There are some forms of recreational activity which are not sports or games but which, nevertheless, involve physical or mental skill or exertion and which promote health, such as keep fit, aerobics, walking, meditation, or being a member of a book club. For organisations concerned with advancing those sorts of activities it is likely that appropriate charitable aims will be ‘the promotion of community participation in healthy recreation’ or the provision of facilities for recreation under the Recreational Charities Act 1958, or ‘the advancement of education’, rather than ‘the advancement of amateur sport’.
44. ‘Amateur’ is not defined in the Act, but we think it is best described as ‘not professional’. Professional sport will always involve payment to players and a range of commercial interests and operation for profit. The distinction between professional and amateur may relate to individual participants, clubs or the framework and organisation of a sport or game itself. Non-incidental (and therefore non-charitable) private benefits (to individuals or organisations) are unlikely to arise in connection with amateur sports or games. Where non-incidental private benefit does arise from advancing a particular sport or game, this may be an indication that the organisation is not set up for the advancement of ‘amateur’ sports or games.
45. In HM Revenue & Custom’s (HMRC) guidance on community amateur sports clubs (‘CASCs’) the following criteria are used to decide whether a sports club is organised on an amateur basis:
46. The guidance adds, “HMRC wouldn't expect a CASC to pay members for playing. But they may accept that the club can make some small payments for playing if the aim is to encourage more people to take part.”
47. Whilst the Commission is not obliged to adopt the same definition of ‘amateur’ as that used by HMRC, the criteria set out in HMRC’s guidance for CASCs provide a useful starting point when thinking about what distinguishes amateur from professional sports or games. Even so, professional sports or games can often be difficult to clearly distinguish from amateur sports or games:
Q4 What criteria do you think we should use when deciding whether what is being advanced is an ‘amateur’ sport or game?
48. To be charitable, an organisation must demonstrate that it has aims that are exclusively charitable. If an organisation for the advancement of amateur sports or games also has an additional, non-charitable, aim then it is not a charity.
49. The advancement of the education, including physical education, and personal development of young persons is recognised as a charitable aim in itself.
50. Education is a broad context and involves the development of skills and capabilities of individuals and in the development of young persons so that they may develop and mature into responsible citizens.
51. Developing young persons may involve training them to a high level in a chosen field of study in which they might excel, such as music, art or sport. The advancement of education in technical subjects is recognised as being charitable for the public benefit. Many universities, for example, have specialist sports programmes.
52. Training young persons to a level of excellence can be charitable where it is part of their education and development. This would include programmes aimed at developing young talented sportspersons by using, for example, a mentoring programme which would include ensuring their continued involvement in amateur sport to allow them to progress to an elite level.
The DKH Legacy Trust (registered number 1128529) is an example of a charity concerned with developing young sportspersons. Its objects are:
(a) To advance the education in sport of young people by the provision of support assistance and encouragement (so as to enable them to fulfil their potential):
(b) To advance the education, development and improvement of young people (mainly) through the provision of sporting programmes so as to develop their skills, capacities and capabilities to enable them to participate in society as independent, mature and responsible citizens; and
(c) the advancement of education in the field of sports leadership and training.
53. Whereas the training of young sportspersons to a level of excellence may be charitable, this needs to be distinguished from promoting sporting success and the activities at sports academies which may not be.
54. The promotion of sporting success is not, of itself, a charitable aim. In seeking to advance amateur sports or games it may be considered that achievement at local, national or international level, including at major events such as the Olympics, may act as an incentive to others to take up, or continue playing a sport or game or to pursue their personal development. The issue is whether the pursuit of success is an aim in itself or is merely one of a number of means of advancing amateur sports or games.
55. National sport governing bodies, for example, might be established with a number of aims which could include bothpromoting participation in, and the development and organisation of, a particular amateur sport or game and in promoting the international standing or world ranking of the nation in that sport or game. Where an organisation has the promotion of international success in a particular sport or game as a separate, free-standing aim then its aims will not be exclusively charitable.
56. However that would not prevent a charity set up to promote amateur sports or games from creating a framework or structure which allows for the development of more accomplished or elite performers. In general, if a charity for the advancement of amateur sports or games provides coaching in that sport or game, we would expect the opportunity to receive that coaching to be given to all players regardless of their skill levels. We recognise in our guidance Charitable Status and Sport that “it is permissible ... to give assistance to better players (for example, to enable them to compete in regional, national or international events) where doing so provides an incentive for participation by all, but such assistance must not be given at the extent of other participants”.
57. The provision of a framework which allows for the sporting development of all abilities and which provides motivation or inspiration to others to progress may be said to be consistent with the advancement of amateur sports or games for the public benefit.
58. The training of ‘elite’ sportspersons may be a legitimate means of advancing amateur sports or games for the public benefit if we acknowledge that training people to a high standard acts as an inspiration to others.
59. However, where an organisation is specifically directed towards the training of elite athletes for sporting success, the proof of that success or outcome is likely to be measured in terms of performance rankings, titles and medals. As such, the purpose would not appear to be the advancement of ‘amateur’ sports or games.
60. By ‘elite’ we mean those individuals who are more talented or highly trained than others. When deciding whether training elite sportspersons for individual success is concerned with advancing ‘amateur’ sports or games for the public benefit, we think the following factors should be taken into consideration:
61. Training elite sportspersons to a high standard might result in such persons going on to secure professional contracts as a result. We regard this as an incidental benefit, provided the purpose of the training is to advance amateur sport and not specifically to train people to become professional sportspersons.
62. Sports academies which are directed towards the development of potential professional sportspersons are concerned with advancing ‘professional’ sports or games. They could not be said to be advancing amateur sports or games for the ‘public’ benefit.
63. Sports academies that are linked to professional clubs or are concerned with the training of professional sportspersons would not have exclusively charitable aims.
64. The types of charities that are likely to have aims that are concerned with advancing amateur sports or games include those involved in:
A1. ‘Public benefit’ is the legal requirement that every organisation set up for one or more charitable aims must be able to demonstrate that its aims are for the public benefit if it is to be recognised and registered as a charity in England and Wales.
A2. There are two key principles of public benefit, both of which must be met in order to show that an organisation’s aims are for the public benefit. Within each principle there are some important factors that must be considered in all cases. These are:
1a: it must be clear what the benefits are 1b: the benefits must be related to the aims 1c: benefits must be balanced against any detriment or harm
2a: the beneficiaries must be appropriate to the aims 2b: where benefit is to a section of the public, the opportunity to benefit must not be unreasonable restricted:
2c: people in poverty must not be excluded from the opportunity to benefit 2d: any private benefits must be incidental
A3. Our detailed guidance on public benefit can be found in Charities and Public Benefit.
A4. Set out below are some possible public benefit considerations for an organisation established to advance amateur sports or games.
Benefits to health: participants
A5. The definition of ‘sport or game’ in the Act retains the link between participating in a sport or game and benefits to the participants’ health. Where the sport or game that is being advanced satisfies that definition, identifiable benefits from advancing the sport or game will, inevitably, include benefits to physical and/or mental health.
A6. The identifiable public benefit from achieving sporting success is less clear. For example it may be argued that national or international sporting success helps to promote national pride. However the benefit of that is less clear in contrast to the clear benefits to the health of participants.
A7. Participating in amateur sports or games can promote a feeling of well-being but this would not be sufficient to be advanced as a claim for health benefits.
Benefits to health: spectators
A8. Whilst there is clear identifiable benefit to health from participation in sport, such health benefits would not arise from merely being a spectator. Unlike the position with the advancement of the arts (where benefits to the public are from being a spectator as well as from being a participant), we do not think that there is a recognisable health benefit from raising the performance of sportspersons for the benefit of spectators. We are unaware of evidence to suggest that the health of a spectator can be promoted simply by watching an amateur sporting event.
Other benefits
A9. When considering the identifiable benefits that arise from advancing an amateur sport or game, it is not only benefits to physical or mental health that are taken into account. Other benefits might also arise, such as promoting social cohesion, advancement of education, personal development of young persons or relief of disability. 2
A10. There might also be opportunities for social interaction which is a benefit from participating in a sport or game played with others.
A11. In so far as there are benefits from social interaction, can the same be said for ‘virtual’ interaction ie where people interact in a ‘virtual’ environment rather than ‘face-to-face’. We need to consider whether the benefits of ‘face-to-face’ social interaction could also be claimed for ‘virtual’ social interaction.
For example, would the benefit of playing, say, poker online with other online participants (in a points based, non-gambling environment) offer the same benefits of social interaction as, say, playing cribbage, face-to-face in a local team?
A12. It might be argued that online games played with others in a ‘virtual community’ can help provide people who, for example, are housebound or live in remote, isolated locations with social interaction they would not otherwise have. However, the issue is whether advancing the playing of online games, involving physical or mental skill or exertion, on the basis that they provide much needed social interaction for those people, is ‘advancing `amateur sports or games’ or whether it is advancing some other charitable aim such as ‘the relief of those in need’.
A13. We recognise that there can be risks of injury involved in playing many physical sports or games. Some, such as those known as ‘extreme’ sports for example, involve risks that go far beyond the usual risks of injury associated with energetic physical exercise. The mere fact that risks of injury might be present does not mean that the benefits of participating in that sport or game are necessarily outweighed by the detriment or harm from those risks of injury. What matters are the steps taken by the organisation advancing that sport or game, perhaps required by its national governing body, to mitigate those risks. Many regulated sports or games mitigate the risks of injury, for example, ensuring that:
A14. When considering the public benefit of an organisation advancing amateur sports or games, we would expect the organisation to demonstrate that it has appropriate policies and procedures in place to mitigate risks of injury so that the participant’s health might be promoted rather than damaged.
A15. We would also expect charities advancing amateur sports or games to mitigate risks of detriment or harm by having appropriate policies and procedures in place dealing with issues such as health and safety or working with children, young persons and vulnerable adults.
A16. Generally speaking, any restrictions on who may benefit from a charity must be legitimate, proportionate, rational and justifiable given the nature of its charitable aims. As far as reasonably practical, an organisation established to advance amateur sports or games would be expected to provide facilities for all who wish to participate and be available to the public. Open membership is usually essential if a charity that advances amateur sports or games is to meet the public benefit requirement.
A17. We recognise that there are circumstances in which some restrictions on membership or participation are reasonable and justifiable. For example, we recognise that the facilities of some clubs are quite limited and that it is not always possible to accommodate everyone who wishes to become a member, on practical or health and safety grounds. In those circumstances, it is perfectly reasonable for an organisation to establish a waiting list for membership where they are oversubscribed, provided that the next available membership is offered to the person at the top of the waiting list (on a first come, first served basis) and not offered to someone lower down the list on the basis that they are a better player.
A18. We recognise that many charitable amateur sports clubs provide access to their services and facilities via a membership structure. In such cases, where the aim is to provide facilities for the benefit of the community, confining the benefits to members of the organisation is consistent with the public requirement provided that:
A19. A club that operates unreasonable restrictions in its membership provisions could not claim to be advancing an amateur sport or game for the ‘public’ benefit.
A20. In Charitable Status and Sport (RR11, paragraph 18) we say, “For membership to be open, membership subscriptions must be affordable for the majority of the community the club serves. Clubs that are able to offer discounted membership rates for people on low incomes or who are unemployed, for example, will find it easier to demonstrate that they are genuinely concerned with encouraging community participation.” In The Recreational Charities Act 1958 (RR4, paragraph A33) we say that to be genuinely open “any subscription is set at such a level that it does not in practice deter or exclude applications for membership”.
A21. We recognise that the competitive element in sports and games is an intrinsic and essential part of its appeal to players, whatever their level of skill. This is not an issue with regard to public benefit. It becomes an issue when an organisation’s resources are geared towards the pursuit of excellence to the detriment of other either less skilled or less competitive members. because in practice, benefits are being unreasonably restricted to a much narrower section of the public.
A22. It is not necessary for every charity that advances amateur sports or games to cater for every level of playing ability. The levels of playing ability for different amateur sports or games range from grass roots level through to intermediate, district, county, national and sometimes international levels. We think that providing facilities for amateur sportspersons of a particular level of playing ability, within that broad range, can be charitable.
A23. In our guidance Public Benefit and Fee-Charging, we set out a framework of factors we will consider when assessing the effect of fee-charging on public benefit. In the case of a charity for the advancement of amateur sports or games, a relevant factor to consider may be the cumulative cost of participation in the sport or game; since in order to promote health, a sport or game usually needs to be undertaken with reasonable frequency. Whilst the cost of individual sessions/lessons may be affordable for most people, the cost of regular participation may be a deterrent to many people who cannot afford to play on a regular basis. Therefore, charities charging ‘high-fees’ (ie fees that many people cannot afford) or where regular participation involves a level of fees, the organisation will need to show what opportunities to benefit are available for people who cannot afford the fees.
A24. The nature of some sports or games may mean that expensive equipment and clothing is required in order to participate. Organisations that are concerned with advancing such sports or games may be able to meet the public benefit requirement if they administer their aims in a way that is geared to maximising participation, perhaps by providing or loaning the use of equipment or by subsidising the cost to participants who are in poverty or otherwise unable to afford the costs of regular participation.
A25. Payments to players will always amount to ‘private’ benefits. The payment need not be direct in order to be considered a private benefit.
A26. The word ‘amateur’ in sport appears to signify the emphasis on participation by ‘non-professionals’, ordinary members of the community who undertake the sport or game on a part-time basis, as an addition to everyday life rather than as a full-time pursuit, for example at grass roots level as opposed to professional level.
A27. ‘Amateur’ may also suggest that the sport or game is not undertaken for financial reward in that neither the participants nor the organisers are paid and the purpose of participation is not to generate profit for them.
A28. Elite sportspersons competing in amateur sporting events may be in receipt of sufficient funding or sponsorship to allow them to devote themselves to training and competition as a full-time pursuit (this could be, for example, grant funding from UK Sports or a combination of funding and sponsorship). Without such level of funding or sponsorship, it is unlikely there would be sportspersons of sufficient calibre to represent their country and compete in world-class events, such as the Olympics. Success at such events can act as an incentive or role model to others to take up a sport or game. However, does the significant benefit to the sportsperson, such as not having to undertake full-time employment as well as training, outweigh this public benefit?
Q7. Do you have any general comments or observations about what we say in this annex about advancing amateur sports or games for the public benefit? For example, when we prepare our guidance following this consultation, are there any aspects of public benefit in relation to advancing amateur sports or games you would like us to cover?
The following are illustrative examples of the many ways in which sport can be used to further a variety of charitable aims; it is not a definitive list.
Example 1 – some charities provide sporting activities or facilities for people with a disability, such as wheelchair bowls, paraplegic shooting, and sailing.
Where sports or games are used in this context, the purpose is not the ‘advancement of amateur sport’ but ‘the relief of disability’. Benefits here might include benefits to health and promoting social inclusion. Example 2 – a charity provides facilities for elderly people to play bowls. The facilities are being provided to relieve the infirmities of old age, such as encroaching stiffness and immobility.
Where sports or games are used in this context the purpose is not the ‘advancement of amateur sport’ but ‘the relief of the effects of old age’. Benefits here might include benefits to health and promoting social inclusion.
Example 3 – a charity provides a multi sports complex for use by all in the local area. The facilities are being provided for recreation or other leisure time occupation in the interests of social welfare and to improve the conditions of life for the people for whom they are intended.
To improve the conditions of life, the facilities should:
Where sports or games are used in this context the purpose is not ‘the advancement of amateur sport’ but the provision of facilities under the Recreational Charities Act 1958. There are multiple benefits here including social cohesion, health, and advancement of education.
Example 4 – a charity provides facilities to enable and encourage young persons (ie pupils at schools and universities) to play football. Limiting the beneficiary class in such a way ensures that attention is given to physical education of such pupils as well as to the development and occupation of their minds).
Where sports or games are used in this context the purpose is not ‘the advancement of amateur sport’ but ‘the education of children and young persons’. Sports and games are used to help the personal development and education of young persons to help develop rounded individuals. Much emphasis is placed on the role of sport and games in education. Benefits here might include education and personal development, health and recreation.
Example 5 – a charity provides recreational and sporting opportunities for members of different ethnic and cultural groups.
Where sports or games are used in this context the purpose is not ‘the advancement of amateur sport’ but the promotion of religious or racial harmony or equality and diversity (section 2(2)(h) of the Act). Here sports or games are being used to promote racial harmony, bringing together people of different religions and race. Benefits here might include social inclusion, health and recreation.
Example 6 – a charity provides a skate park for young people to roller skate, skateboard and ride BMX bikes.
Example 7 – a charity provides sporting facilities for members of the police force.
Where sports or games are used in this context the purpose is not ‘the advancement of amateur sport’ but the promotion of the efficiency of the police force by maintaining high standards of fitness (section 2 (2) (l) of the Act).
1. Research studies include: Diamond Study (Dr Marion Diamond), The Franklin Institute, Case Western Reserve University Medical School, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minnesota, Dr Geda from the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging (MCSA), University of California and Seattle Longitudinal Study.
2. see also Commission of the European Communities White Paper on Sport, Burssels 11.7.2007 COM (2007) 391 final.
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