Hi all – its been a long time since I put things up here for you all to ignore so I thought I had better get you all up to date. So come in, sit down and relax. Get yourself a cup of tea and a biscuit – no – I insist.

Rather than just write an epic tome I have decided to break you all in gently and drip feed you my ramblings a bit at a time. Don’t want to melt your heads now do I. 

2010 was a bit of a strange one for us here at Feathers Towers both in terms of work and other stuff going on. I would like to start this off by thanking all those of you who have continued to support us as a company and especially me as an individual.

 So here it is – THANKS. It’s not much but it is all I have to offer and it comes from deep down in my warm and fuzzy place.

Enough of that sentimental claptrap – lets get down to business.

January (as it so often does) heralded a New Year and a slightly new direction for us. Slashed budgets throughout many council departments, the dissolution of the school sports partnerships and a general economic slow down have meant less funding available for Feathers and Fletchings to deliver quality archery sessions.

To be honest, I think we could all see this coming but I am sure no one could have foreseen the scale of the cuts. There are a great number of people who I have worked with over the years who are now facing a very uncertain future. These people have devoted their working lives to ensuring the provision of high quality PE and sporting opportunities to thousand of young people.

Over the years Feathers and Fletchings has been running I have met a considerable number of these kids and have watched them grow from spotty oiks into mature, well rounded individuals. (And, for some it has to be said, just into taller, spotty oiks).

For me, sport is not just about getting fit or staying healthy. (as those of you who have met me will know) It’s about a lot more than that. It gives people an opportunity to see the values of honesty, integrity and all those other things we claim to hold dear in a real setting. It’s a way to practice those values in a safe and non threatening environment.

Think of it this way. We teach kids subtraction in schools from quite an early age. For most it’s just an abstract concept, just numbers on a page. Something they know about but don’t necessarily understand. It’s not until they get out into the world and start spending money that they can see it in all its glory.

Sport is the same. We try and instil a sense of fair play into them from a very early age. But “fair play” is another of these abstract concepts. After all it’s not tangible like a duck or a spoon. They can’t stroke it or smell it or eat it. It’s only when they get to see this mythical “fair play” in action in a practical setting that they start to understand its importance.

With the demise of school sport we have lost something really valuable from our society. True, we will still have PE lessons and for most, that will be enough. But the Sports Partnerships offered more. They were about giving these sporting opportunities to those that could really benefit from them.

So if you think that by cutting this sporting provision and saving a small amount of money now is beneficial, I would ask that you think again. Think of the big picture. Think long term. Remember that one day these kids will be adults and you will rely on them to look after you in your dotage, provide you with the services you require, build you a new conservatory – and run the country for you.

Then think about this. When they lie, cheat and steal. When they act with dishonesty and a lack of moral fibre. When they can’t distinguish between right and wrong it’s because we took away one of their opportunities to learn about and understand the importance of these things.

And we did it so that the price of a pint of beer didn’t go up.

There area number of e-petitions to pressure the government into completely reversing their decision to cut sports funding going around the Wibbly Wobbly Web at the moment. If one comes your way I urge you not to send it to the recycle bin but to sign it. Let the government that we (sort of) elected know how we feel.

That is all – rant over. In the next thrilling instalment of this blog I will relate to you stories of derring do from yours truly, news of current and future Feathers and Fletchings projects and also about my new “Kids with Cake” programme. Truly something for you to look forward to.

Keep that shoulder down

Andy