Catalogue description Department of Culture, Media and Sport: Sport and Recreation Division: Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games Unit: Registered Files (CG, CGAand OGU Prefix Series)

The Cabinet agreed to back a bid for London to host the 2012 Olympic Games on 15 May 2003. The aim was to build on the UK's status in world sport, increase medal success and increase participation in sport. There would be benefits to London through inward investment, tourism, regeneration, transportation and housing and to the UK through events staged outside London, training camps, wider tourism, a cultural programme and the facilities legacy. A stakeholder panel was set up consisting of the Government, the British Olympic Association (BOA) and the Mayor of London/GLA. The bid was jointly and equally funded by DCMS and the London Development Agency. On 15 July 2003 the BOA was notified of London's bid, on 15 January 2004 the applicant city questionnaire was submitted to the International Olympic Committee, the bid folder was submitted on 15 November 2004 and following an evaluation visit in February and March 2005 it was announced on 6 July 2005 that London had been awarded the Games.

The Sport and Recreation Division was responsible for sport and recreation policy generally, sport for all and sponsorship of the UK and English Sports Council and the Football Licensing Authority. It also dealt with the safety of sports grounds, local authority and business sponsorship of sport and international matters. From 1997 to 2000 there were three branches in the Division:

• SARD A dealing with sponsorship, the National Lottery and the funding of sport;
• SARD B dealing with wider sport issues including youth sport, drug abuse in sport, sport for people with disabilities and children's play; and
• SARD C dealing with sports ground safety, sports broadcasting rights, playing fields and local authority issues.

The remit of the Division was widened in 2000 to promote increased participation in sport, more success in international sporting events and the contribution of sports to health, education, communities and economic regeneration. SARD A, B and C wre renamed Performance and Excellence Branch, Youth and Lifelong Branch and Economics and International Branch.

The Olympic Games Unit was set up in 2002 to pursue the possibility of a bid for the Olympic Games. It succeeded the Commonwealth Games Unit and was responsible for project management of the bid, co-ordination with government and the legislation team and staging preparations.