Up to 6,000 community sports clubs could close during the recession because of falling memberships, it was claimed yesterday.

A survey by the the CCPR, the umbrella organisation for 290 national governing bodies of sport and recreation, found that 60 per cent are suffering a fall in commercial income with half cutting back on staff, opening hours and kit.

Up to a third predict that things will get worse as members ask for a reduction or a delay in subscription payments, spend less at the bar and stop hiring out the halls and pavilions for parties.

Many clubs claim that they will not be able to cover basic overheads such as gas, electricity and water, let alone coaching and training sessions for children.

Brigid Simmonds, the CCPR chairwoman, said: “This recession could be a full blown disaster for community sport. Clubs are in trouble . . . unless we act, thousands could go under.

“They are the bedrock of sport in this country and it is bad for the fabric of the community at large.”

The CCPR is seeking a moratorium on costly government regulation, such as liquor licensing fees, and charges from private utility companies, including pitch drainage, until the economy picks up.

Ms Simmonds said that ministers needed community clubs to help to deliver their promise of five hours of sport in schools by 2012.

“We are not looking for extra cash, just a port in the storm,” she said. “Sport needs all the support it can get. We’re not peddling cigarettes or selling missiles, we’re promoting something good not that you’d know it from the reception we get in some government departments.”

Andy Burnham, the Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, said that the Government was working with clubs to alleviate the burden of water rates and improve access by schools.

He said that sport’s value to society and the economy was broadly recognised in Whitehall and in local councils in Britain and that it would not be cut loose.

“There is unprecedented public investement in sport at every level as we prepare for the Olympic Games,” he said. “I don’t think 6,000 clubs will go to the wall because there is a resilience built in over decades.

“Of course it is tough out there and sports clubs are feeling it but they know how to dig in and get through it.”

He called on the professionals within sports to distribute more of their income to the grass roots. “There is too much money going out at the top and it’s fair to ask whether they’re doing enough to ensure it’s filtering down,” he said.

There is no data about the number of clubs that folded during the last recession but anecdotaly, sport and leisure is among the first things that families cut back on.

The Plymouth Admirals, an American football club founded 25 years ago, reports a declining number of new members because of the recession.

Its annual subscription is £200 while kit can double the cost of participation for its 34 regular players. The club costs about £7,000 a year to run, which is just about covered by subscriptions but these are falling along with the number of new members.

Paula Dodds, the general manager, said: “It’s difficult when you have a family to support or if you’ve lost your job to justify it.

“We’ve lowered the subs because we got a grant this year but if things go on the way they are then we could fold. We promote healthy living and fitness so the government should help to keep that going.”

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