Water Sports
(asked on 16th July 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to increase locations for paddle boarding across the UK.
Answered by
Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to and benefits from quality sport and physical activity opportunities, including paddle boarding.
Sport is a devolved policy area in Northern Ireland for which the Department for Communities is responsible.
In England, the Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. This includes long term investment to Paddle UK, the National Governing Body for paddle sports, which receives up to £10.2 million for five years to invest in community initiatives.
Our rivers, lakes, canals, and seas play a vital role in helping people across the country to get physically active, while enjoying the benefits of being outside in nature. The Government will continue to work collectively to improve access to clean water in order to allow more people to enjoy the benefits of water sports and water-based recreational activities, including paddle boarding.