Sport Relief - just £15,645 a year for Cornwall

Here's a statistic from this evening's event which shocked me.

Just £15,645 of funding from Sport Relief comes to Cornwall each year. That's a tiny amount and I'm horrified that it's so little.

Apparently the amount is calculated on the basis of population numbers and is, not surprisingly, massively over-subscribed. As well as their work in the UK, there are also lots of good projects around the world.

I do not want to decry the work that Sport Relief does. What money they do spend here goes to very worthwhile projects that can make a huge difference to the lives of disadvantaged people. If you are taking part in any of the events this weekend then I congratulate you and wish you all the best. I certainly wouldn't want to put you off taking part and the low level of funding coming to Cornwall is not a reason to think twice.

But the fact remains that this is a massive event and yet only a comparatively small amount is spent on local projects. I hope that this year's event raises lots more than previously so that more can come to Cornish projects. After all, we are one of the poorest parts of the UK and there are a wide range of projects here that really need this sort of help.