A RECORD £5 million plus is being invested in the development of new flagship sports facilities across Craven in 2003.

The figure is equivalent to £100 for every man, woman and child in the district and puts Craven at the top of a Yorkshire league table of funding for sport from the National Lottery.

This major achievement, detailed in a report from Craven District Council's sports development officer Bruce Dinsmore, is seen as a positive indicator of the impact of Craven's Sports and Recreation Strategy, first introduced in 1998.

The report highlights a total capital investment of £5,162,500 in sports facilities across the district this year, a figure greatly boosted by the investment of £3.9 million in the new Craven Swimming Pool in Aireville Park, Skipton.

Other investments include £835,000 for an artificial turf pitch at Sandylands sports centre, Skipton, £220,000 for a clubhouse at Glusburn Cricket Club, £100,000 for playing fields at Bentham, £67,500 for a multi-use games area at Sutton-in-Craven and £40,000 for Skipton's Greatwood multi-use games area. Other smaller capital schemes have also been delivered.

Craven District Council provided over £2 million worth of funding towards new sports facilities. The remainder has come from major grants from Sport England, The Football Foundation and the New Opportunities Fund (NOF), plus funding from Craven's Single Regeneration Budget, financial support from the corporate sector, notably Skipton Building Society, and the fundraising efforts of the clubs and organisations themselves.

Jonathan Kerr, Craven District Council's head of economic and community development, said: "This is a phenomenal achievement for a small rural district and Craven now has the highest ratio of Sports Lottery Fund money per head of population in the whole of Yorkshire."

Mr Kerr warned there were future changes, challenges and investments to be made and met if Craven was to continue with this level of investment and development.

"The Government has set a staggering target of 70 per cent of the population doing five 30 minutes spells of moderate intensity physical activity a week by the year 2020," he explained. "In Craven, this represents over 1,100 people per year for the next 17 years taking up the five 30 minute standard."

Council leader Carl Lis added: "These achievements can only be viewed as glowing testimony to the overwhelming success and impact of Craven's Sports and Recreation Strategy, and a clear demonstration of how council-led partnerships can and do work.

"However, facilities alone do not make good opportunities - people do. The dedication and commitment of volunteer workers across all the projects have been unwavering and can be held up as a shining example of the way communities can come together to improve the lives of their local residents and the sports facilities of the district in general."

o Craven is to appoint its first football development officer. He or she will be responsible for helping soccer clubs across the district and fostering the game among youngsters, the disabled and minority groups.