Forum Brief: Tax relief for amateur sports clubs

Community amateur sports clubs will be able to benefit from government changes to help them claim tax relief.

Treasury Minister John Healey said: "We want to encourage as many people as possible - particularly young people - to take up sport. These measures will make it easier for local sports clubs to offer them the chance."

Forum Response: Sport England

Trevor Brooking, chairman of Sport England, told ePolitix.com: "Combined with the Charity Commission's extension of charitable status, which will also benefit many of these clubs, this tax relief change will benefit grass roots sport. It will help clubs off the pitch so they can perform better on it."

Forum Response: Charity Commission

A spokeswoman for the Charity Commission told ePolitix.com: "The Charity Commission welcomes the government's decision to make tax reliefs available to community amateur sports clubs.

"The Commission recognised the valuable role that sport can play in improving the health of the nation when it announced last year its acceptance of the promotion of community participation in healthy recreation as a charitable purpose.

"That decision, for the first time, enabled community amateur sports clubs to apply to become charities. We hope that as many clubs as possible will feel encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity.

"However, for those clubs unable or unwilling to do this, the new tax package offers an excellent alternative."