SCOTLAND'S national agency for sport has announced a new partnership with the UK-wide race discrimination charity Sporting Equals.

The collaboration comes as part of an ongoing commitment to tackling race inequality in sport and physical activity.

Sportscotland and Sporting Equals will focus on five key areas over the three-year partnership.

It will aim to build trust and capability within the Scottish sporting system to tackle race inequality and prioritise anti-racism, as well as deliver stellar research and insight that explores topics in sport, physical activity, health, race, and governance.

The partnership will also advocate for ethnically diverse communities in sport and physical activity and seek to influence the public through "collaborative communication plans".

And there will be a target of "empowering and working with communities so they can deliver change for themselves".

The chiefexecutive of Sporting Equals, Arun Kang OBE, said: “Having worked in Scotland before at a local level we are proud to join sportscotland in this vital work.

“We bring extensive experience in creating solutions and changing perspectives.

"Through our partnership we will work to improve race equality in Scottish sport.”

The partnership will also strive to increase levels of knowledge, awareness and the understanding of the issues within sport and to give sporting communities the confidence to identify racism and inequality.

Sportscotland said it wants to ensure that inclusion is at the heart of policy-making, working closely with Sporting Equals to achieve this.

Sporting Equals is a UK charity that works to improve race inequality in sport and other physical activities.

Racism in Scottish sport has been in the spotlight after concerns raised by Scottish cricketers Majid Haq and Qasim Sheikh.

A damning report found Cricket Scotland to be institutionally racist.