London 2012 construction's £7.3 billion impact on UK economy
Independent report shows sport, community and regeneration legacy plans are also on track.
Construction for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games gave the UK economy a £7.3 billion boost, a report has revealed.
The latest meta-evaluation of the impacts and legacy of the Games, produced by a consortium led by Grant Thornton and commissioned by DCMS, used available data up to June 2012.
It found that £6.5 billion spent by the Olympic Delivery Authority on the construction of venues, infrastructure and the Olympic Village resulted in an estimated impact of £7.3 billion of Gross Added Value and 160,000 years’ worth of employment.
The CompeteFor website, which listed Games-related contract opportunities for small businesses, also helped to generate growth with more than 140,000 businesses registered on the site by the end of 2010/11.
Strong legacy
On top of this, the study found plans are progressing well to ensure a strong sports legacy, strengthen communities and help regenerate East London. Findings included:
- 89 per cent of young people signed up to Sport England’s Sportivate programme were still playing sport regularly three months later;
- the School Games surpassed its target of signing up 12,000 schools, with 13,600 registered by May 2012;
- 15 million in communities around the UK saw the Olympic Torch Relay and 70,000 people were recruited as Games Maker volunteers;
- socio-economic indicators suggest East London is ‘closing the gap’ with the rest of London in areas such as education and life expectancy;
- 7,000 new homes (35 per cent affordable and 42 per cent family homes) will be built in the Olympic Park along with three schools, three health centres and 102 hectares of open space.
“The legacy from the London 2012 Games gives us an opportunity to regenerate East London, maximise opportunities to drive economic growth and encourage a generation to choose sport,” Sports Minister Hugh Robertson said. “London 2012 has raised the bar for future host cities and I am encouraged that this report shows we are on track to deliver a meaningful legacy.”
The fifth and final Meta-Evaluation report will assess the impacts during the Games and of immediate post-Games activities and is due to be published by summer 2013.