Member Article

Major event held to improve the delivery of PE and sport in schools

A major event has been held in Coventry to help improve the delivery of PE and sports in schools.

Around 85 head teachers, heads of PE and PE co-ordinators from schools across Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire gathered for the PE and School Sports Conference at the Ricoh Arena.

The event, which was hosted by Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire Sport (CSW Sport), discussed the ways in which schools can provide quality physical education and sports activities to inspire youngsters and help raise achievement levels in schools.

Tony Wilmot, PE and School Sports Steering Group Chair and head teacher at Queen Elizabeth School in Atherstone introduced the event and discussed the value of sport within a school environment.

Key note speakers included Annette Montague, assistant director of the Youth Sports Trust, and Sue Wilkinson, strategic lead for the Association of PE (afPE) and director of the Professional Support Unit.

Caroline Kiely, head teacher at Willenhall Community Primary School in Coventry, also gave an insight into how sports activities have helped to raise the achievement levels of students.

A variety of workshops were also held to help schools embed PE and sports activities within the curriculum as well as throughout extra curricula activities and competitive sport.

CSW Sport is the country sports partnership for the sub-region and presented the event on behalf of the Coventry Solihull and Warwickshire School Sports Steering Group, in partnership with the Youth Sport Trust (YST) and Association for PE (afPE).

Richard May, sport development manager at CSW Sport, said: “It is important that we continue to engage young people in sport and physical education and schools in particular play a vital role in helping to inspire the next generation.

“We currently support the delivery of a wide variety of national programmes including the widely successful level three Sainsbury’s School Games Festival along with the Sportivate programme and the development of satellite clubs.

“We also give supportive guidance to help primary schools across the sub-region use the new PE and Sport funding in an effective way.

“At a time when levels of inactivity and obesity are of a national concern it is important for us to ensure that all young people have access to sport no matter what life throws at them and the PE and School Sports conference helps to ensure that schools and sport providers are well equipped to deliver this goal.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Matt Joyce .