YOUNG athletes are set to benefit from a cash boost of almost £3m thanks to a lottery-funded sports programme that was launched on Monday last week.

Ealing schools will receive £2.98m from the New Opportunities for PE and Sport Programme to support the creation of new, modern indoor and outdoor sports facilities for kids and the wider community.

Cabinet member for Community Health, Philip Portwood, said: "We are delighted to have been awarded this grant and will be working over the next few months to develop schemes that provide high quality sports facilities for our young people that are also available to the wider community as a whole."

He added: "This funding provides another boost to the council's aims of becoming the top London borough for providing sports opportunities to young people over the next five years."