Sport England has named the sport projects that will receive £10m of National Lottery money in order to encourage physical activity among women.

A total of 20 projects have been earmarked to receive funding, with individual grants ranging from small, local investments to a £2.3m contribution to assist an entire region to improve the uptake of sport.

Each grant will support women from disadvantaged communities - and women caring for children - playing sport as part of the drive to deliver a mass participation legacy from London 2012.

Projects to receive funding include:
Netball in the City, a project aiming to get more than 12,000 women back on the court in Bristol, Leeds, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Wolverhampton (awarded £1m).

Fit, Free & Fabulous, a Lancashire-based council's domestic violence team that runs a sports project for women who've suffered abuse (awarded £154,509).

StreetGames, a charity that aims to get 30,000 women playing 'doorstep sports' in 49 of the most disadvantaged areas in England (awarded £2.295m).

A National Women's Cycling Network will also be created thanks to a £992,159 investment which will see 80,000 women getting on their bikes.

British Cycling will recruit cycling champions to organise led-rides and inspire others to take part.

Figures published by Sport England in December revealed the size of the gender gap in sport. At present, only one in eight (2.761 million) women regularly play sport in England.

Jennie Price, Sport England's chief executive, said: "The projects we're funding today have asked local women what is stopping them from getting involved and what sports interest them, before coming up with an offer that is appealing and accessible."