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EDINBURGH-based private bank Hampden & Co have stepped up their support of OSS research into drop-out from sport in Scotland and challenges and opportunities facing community sport.

Hampden & Co have been a Corporate Partner of the OSS over the past two years, their MD Graeme Hartop believing community sport activity to have been a vital part of both his and staff members’ quality of life from an early age. Hartop admitted that he was concerned at the drop-off in participation levels among teenagers across Scotland in the past decade.

The company is helping the OSS pull stakeholders together to bring nationwide clarity to the challenges and produce evidence that helps the Scottish Government, local authorities, leisure trusts, Sportscotland, sport bodies and communities to plot a sustainable path out of the Covid pandemic, and enables all ages and abilities to access fun sport on their doorstep. The physical, mental and social health benefits to individuals and communities were key, he said, and lay behind the Hampden & Co investment.

He added: “Hampden & Co are delighted to support this important piece of research as the health, social and leadership benefits of participating in sport are undoubted. The decline in sport participation in Scotland in recent years has been dramatic and gaining a full understanding of the factors behind this is key to growing participation going forward.”

The OSS has brought together a wide range of business people and companies that share the ambition to contribute to the health and wellbeing of Scotland’s population. If you would like to become an OSS Corporate Partner and help to shape a healthier nation, contact OSS Chief Executive David Ferguson – david@oss.scot.