The sports policy of the municipality of Emmen leaves much to be desired in various areas. There is a lack of concrete goals and annual implementation plans in the field of sports and exercise. In addition, the possibilities for natural exercise and sporting exercise activities in this municipality are limited.
These are some conclusions from a research report by the Mulier Institute from Utrecht. On behalf of the Emmen Court of Audit, the researchers examined Emmen’s sports policy. They analyzed policy documents and data, and also conducted interviews with those involved. According to the researchers, Emmen was innovative in 2017 by linking sports to health in a future memorandum until the year 2030. “A shortcoming in that memorandum, however, is that this municipality only mentions broad ambitions and not concrete and measurable goals.”
This makes it difficult to assess where Emmen stands in this area, the researchers say. And there are more points of attention in the municipality’s sports policy, according to Mulier. According to the researchers, little visible progress has been made on the plan to strengthen neighborhoods and villages with sports and exercise. And according to the study, the use of money does not always match the emphasis that the municipality wants to place on natural and sporty exercise.
“The implementation focuses mainly on accommodations. This mainly facilitates sports clubs, which are largely focused on competitive sports and not on natural and sporty exercise.” More generally, the researchers noticed that, compared to the national average, fewer residents in Emmen are members of a sports club. The share of residents who exercise weekly is also lower.
The researchers have therefore now come up with a list of recommendations for Emmen. According to the researchers, it would be good to improve future policy by adding measurable goals. In addition, the municipality should make more use of relevant social data, such as figures on the extent to which sports and exercise take place in each neighborhood. Furthermore, Emmen should deploy neighborhood sports coaches in neighborhoods where the disadvantages are greatest and policy should be introduced to structurally support sports clubs, instead of ad hoc policy as is often the case now. There must also be a multi-year maintenance plan for outdoor sports.
The research also reveals positive things for Emmen. For example, the interviewees are generally positive about the way in which they were involved by the municipality in drawing up the policy and Emmen has a relatively large number of sports facilities compared to the national average.
In a written response, the Emmen council indicates that it will include the recommendations in the further development of the policy. According to the council, actions had recently been initiated to improve the situation. This includes the establishment of Angelslo Academy, which places extra emphasis on sports and culture in a neighborhood where there are significant disadvantages.
The council also reports that data is increasingly being used to determine commitment and that additional support has been offered to associations since this year. In addition, the municipality says it works with so-called ‘area-oriented work plans’, in which neighborhood sports coaches provide insight into the goals they want to achieve for each activity.