Image: Sports volunteers are often ignored by the honours system

Sport and Recreation Alliance (SRA) chair Andy Reed has called for more people from the sports world to be recognised by the UK's honours system.

Responding to the Public Administration Select Committee's (PASC) report on the honours system, Reed said any possible changes shouldn't be about "levelling down" and taking potential honours away from people who deserve them.

"The number of honours awarded to people involved in sport is trifling compared with the numbers of people from other walks of life," Reed said.

"Sports volunteers, for example, are much more deserving of recognition than many career civil servants, whatever their contribution. Some sports volunteers work for a lifetime without any formal recognition of their contribution to society and that's a real shame.

"A reform that would really help would be to increase the proportion of honours available to people who have made significant contributions to voluntary sport.

Reed's comments came after PASC recommended ending the practice of awarding honours to high-ranking civil servants and sports personalities for "doing the day job".

To read PASC's full report, click here.

Image: Michaelpuche/shutterstock.com