Figures released in April show that the Foundation for Sport and the Arts had given a massive 2.5m to diving since 1991. It is still funding the sport but, inevitably, pools income diminished from 1995 when the National Lottery came into play. Over the same period, the Foundation for Sport and the Arts provided about 890,000. So the two organisations gave nearly 2.3m to diving in the three years to April. The Foundation for Sport and the Arts considers any diving group, while only the Lottery Sports Fund requires affiliation with the British Sub-Aqua Club.
Applications can take up to a year to process from first submission to the final release of funds.
Both organisations confirm that they typically award anything from a quarter to two-thirds of the cost of an intended purchase, occasionally the total cost. The decision is made on the merits of individual cases, including factors such as the wealth of the club, the number of members and potential members, and the nature of the request. Diving clubs throughout the country have received sums ranging from a few thousand pounds to some 30,000, a few applicants receiving even more. But the average figures are impressive enough. For instance, in April the English Sports Council, responsible for about two-thirds of the Lottery Sports Fund's national total, said its average award to diving clubs had been 15,119.