ENGLAND’S community rugby clubs have been boosted by an allocation of £30 million of government funding, the biggest single investment in the community game, following collaboration between the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Sport England, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the grassroots game.

The government’s Sport Winter Survival Package was created to protect major spectator sports’ immediate futures after revenue was lost during the pandemic due to spectators not being able to attend matches.

As a consequence of not being able to host fixtures and events at Twickenham Stadium during this period, the RFU lost revenue streams that would normally be re-invested in the community game.

Government funding has therefore helped to provide a lifeline to clubs and communities across the country.

The RFU also requested for its funding allocation to be directed straight to community clubs who needed it most.

As part of the sport package, the Rugby Union Winter Survival Fund was launched in February 2021 to ensure clubs survived the winter period and minimised long-term damage to participation.

To date 512 rugby clubs have received Rugby Union Winter Survival Fund grants totalling £18,275,903.

It is hoped an additional £11.5 million will be injected into the community game after a further 129 clubs applied for a loan to support essential infrastructure for survival and sustainability.

Grants, capped at £50,000 per club, were made available to community clubs who could demonstrate financial need and that they had been severely impacted by Covid-19 restrictions.

With the future of many clubs depending on this critical funding, an inspired team-effort saw a grant’s programme launch within five days of government’s authorisation.

Clubs worked quickly to hit tight deadlines, supported by their Constituent Bodies (CBs) and RFU staff, and in just over two months the RFU had transferred more than £18.2m of government funding.

Clubs at every level of the community game have benefited across the country. Loan application assessments are currently underway in the second phase of support.