Local charity Pompey in the Community was praised in Parliament this week by the city MP for their work providing sporting and educational opportunities for all in Portsmouth.
Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan raised the work of the local charity with fellow MPs in a House of Commons debate on Sport in schools and communities on Tuesday.
Morgan, who is also Shadow Minister for Schools, hailed the work of the charity in “using the power of football to bring people together, and transform lives of children in my city.”
Pompey in the Community, a charity affiliated Portsmouth Football Club, provided sporting opportunities to 35,000 people in the local area last season.
The Parliamentary debate was taking place following the publication of a Public Accounts Committee report which found that the Government “lacks a compelling vision for integrating physical activity into everyday life.”
Labour called on the government to back its plan to boost the number of PE hours taught by hiring 6,500 more teachers and reforming the curriculum.
Labour also called for the government to capitalise on the momentum behind women’s sport following the Lionesses’ inspiring Euros victory, by introducing an equal access guarantee for school sport, so that boys and girls have access to the same sports at school.
During the debate Morgan highlighted the plummeting number of PE teachers and hours of PE taught in England over the past decade.
Stephen Morgan MP, member of Parliament for Portsmouth South said:
“I was delighted to celebrate the fantastic work of Pompey in the Community during the debate.
“Last week I visited the charity and saw first-hand the tremendous work they are doing using the power of football to bring people together, and transform lives of children in the city.
“Sports participation has been declining nationwide under the current government, so it is a shame there aren’t more community groups like Pompey in the Community across the country to provide sporting opportunities for all.”
This is not the first time Morgan has raised local sports issues in Westminster. Last year the MP wrote a letter to the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in support of Portsmouth gyms and sports facilities following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Morgan is also lobbying for increased investment in the city’s leisure and cultural facilities.
