Recognised for their extraordinary dedication to their local communities, five of Scotland’s top performing sporting initiatives have been named as finalists for Community Hub, Club or School of the Year at the Team Scotland Scottish Sports Awards on 21 September.

Awarded to the Community Sport Hub, Club or School which has made the most progress and impact on their community over the last year, the award attracted dozens of nominations across a wide range of sporting pursuits and from every region of Scotland. Impressing the judges with their innovation and ambition, Drumchapel Community Sports Hub, Springburn Harriers, Fyrish Gymnastics Club, Clovenstone Boxing Club and Fairfield Community Sports Hub will now go head to head for the top award supported by sportscotland.

Drumchapel Community Sport Hub are making a huge difference to their local community, particularly with the Get Active in Drumchapel project which saw the hub deliver activities to over 1100 local people. The project targeted traditionally inactive groups including teen girls, older adults, people recovering from addiction, people with a disability and women. The hub also works with a range of partners including Active Schools to deliver the ‘Drumwealth Games’ which involves 490 local school pupils.

Innovation abounds at Springburn Harriers, notably with the G21 Project which targets an area of deprivation in their local community, encouraging participation and membership from young people, adults and families who may previously have found it difficult to access sporting activities. The first athletics club in the UK to be recognised as a Duke of Edinburgh awarding centre, they have also seen the start of the Mini Harriers, bringing more young people into the sport and giving 18 of their existing young athletes experience of delivering the sessions.

Fyrish is a small gymnastics club in the Scottish Highlands delivering gymnastics sessions to over 400 young people – with over 10% of under 16s in the town attending the club. The club has become more than a sports club, with regular late night sessions for dis-engaged teenagers at risk of anti-social behaviour producing many young leaders and coaches. Using sport as a way to engage with this group has brought multiple benefits for the participants, the club and the local community.

Situated in a community listed in the top 15% most deprived areas in Scotland, Clovenstone Boxing Club has successfully created a space for safe, controlled, meaningful social and physical interaction. Alongside boxing training, the club reaches out to the local community with youth health clubs, family food clubs and English for speakers of other languages. The club’s influence extends out-with the gym itself, delivering activity to three local high schools, to individuals in social care, and to individuals with a history of alcohol and substance abuse.

Fairfield Community Sports Hub consists of nine sports clubs with the aim of being the catalyst community pride, enthusiasm and connectivity across all age groups. The hub has taken considerable strides in the last year, including the establishment of a successful partnership with Dundee City Council aimed at offering combined employability CPD opportunities and coach education to unemployed men in the community. Targeted group work has also included the creation of girls, disability and walking football clubs as well as rolling out tennis taster sessions and lunchtime clubs in local primary schools.

Paul Bush OBE, Chair, Commonwealth Games Scotland said: “Community Hubs, clubs and schools sit at the heart of Scottish sport, providing a vital route into recreational and competitive sport, as well as making a huge contribution to the health and well-being of the nation as a whole. The phenomenal dedication of our five finalists to their communities deserves recognition and they should be rightly proud of their achievements over the past year.”

The Community Hub, Club or School of the Year award is supported by sportscotland, the lead agency for the development of sport in Scotland. Establishing community sport hubs comprising partnerships from across clubs, schools and local organisation partners was a key goal linked to Glasgow 2014. sportscotland’s mission is to build a world class sporting system for everyone in Scotland, making sport a way of life, placing it at the heart of society and making a positive impact on people and communities.

Winners across all categories will be crowned at the Team Scotland Scottish Sports Awards in a star-studded celebration of Scottish sport on 21 September at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre.