A BID for Lottery money to be used to encourage Malvern children to become more involved in sport has been rejected.

Over the past two years the Malvern Hills District Primary Schools' tag-rugby project has taken the sport to 32 local primary schools and is now played by about 900 children.

The project involves Malvern Rugby Club, Malvern Hills District Council and South Worcestershire NHS and is part of a programme to encourage access to sport and to promote health and fitness.

Gary Tolley, chairman of youth rugby at Malvern Rugby Club, said that the project began during the 40th anniversary of the British Heart Foundation.

"Tag-rugby can be played in school halls and playgrounds," he said. "For children its all inclusive because girls and boys play it. It's basically a non-contact version of rugby.

"It's the game the RFU are promoting to introduce children to the contact game and it's supposed to be the game of the Millennium.

"We don't know why our Awards for All application was rejected. It has taken 12 months to get through this far. We're disappointed because we thought it was a good community programme."

A total of £5,000 was sought to buy new equipment to enable children to be bussed from outlying areas to sports centres and to provide coaching clinics in high schools.

However, the district council's sport and recreation officer, Avril Irish, said: "If the rugby club's funding application isn't successful it doesn't mean we won't do tag-rugby next year. We will but we will find a different way.

"I'm also optimistic that we'll be able to resubmit the application. But until I've seen the report from the Lottery, I don't know how easy or difficult that is going to be."