Changing their game? : the institutional effects of Sport England's lottery fund on voluntary sports clubs.

摘要

This thesis investigates the expectations placed on voluntary sports clubs (VSCs) inudexchange for Lottery funding awarded by Sport England. the resulting effects of thoseudpressures on VSCs' organisational structures and VSCs' responses to theseudpressures. Using institutional theory as a framework. it is argued that receipt ofudfunding from Sport England's Lottery Fund exposes VSCs to the normativeudprescriptions of the sports policy sector to a greater extent than they ever were beforeudapplying to the Fund. These normative pressures are reinforced by Sport Englandudthrough coercion and the provision of legitimate models for VSCs to mimic resulting inuda more bureaucratic structure for VSCs in receipt of funding.·udThe research was conducted in three phases. Phase one constituted theudidentification of institutional pressures exerted by Sport England through its LotteryudFund on VSCs through semi-structured interviews with Sport England staff andudanalysis of Lottery Fund documents. A survey of VSCs in receipt of Lottery fundingudfrom Sport England was conducted in phase two to establish any change in theudVSCs' structures since receiving funding. Finally. in phase three. six case studies ofudVSCs were selected from phase two. Pairs of VSCs from three sports were selectedudfor qualitative investigation. One of the pair exhibited an increased level of structureudwhile the other demonstrated no change or a reduction in its level of structure.udThe majority of VSCs surveyed in phase two experienced an increase in structure toudsome degree after receiving Lottery funding. However. the case studies in phaseudthree demonstrate that the changes in VSCs' level of structure cannot be attributedudonly to receipt of Lottery funding from Sport England. Two of the six case studiesudalso made resistant responses to the institutional pressures of Sport England'sudLottery Fund.