EAST Renfrewshire children are being encouraged to become more active.

Thousands of pounds are to be spent on out-of-school sporting activities for the region's youngsters.

Part of a recent £283,840 grant from sportscotland to East Renfrewshire Culture and Leisure (ERCL) will be used to help fund out-of-school sporting activities as part of the ‘Levelling the Playing Field’ initiative.

A total of £233,340 will be spent on ERCL’s Active Schools programme.

A recent survey of schoolchildren in East Renfrewshire showed youngsters from less-well off backgrounds don’t take part in as much organised sport as pupils from other areas.

Chief executive of ERCL, Anthony McReavy, said the initiative aims to address this disparity, close the attainment gap and boost confidence and resilience among young people.

He added: “We want to make sure that every youngster gets the same opportunities to be involved in organised sport.

“We’re making sure all youngsters have access to out-of-school sports activities.”