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More States funds is to be given to the Sports Commission to continue its PE in Schools programmes, which will also benefit from a fundraising initiative being supported by a number of organisations today.
Sport Your Trainers will see school children, workers and others wearing their 'pumps' for the day, in exchange for making a £1 donation to the Sports Commission.
The GSC said all of the money raised will help it continue to deliver "the wide range of programmes that the Commission delivers each day in Guernsey."
That includes PE in Schools, Street Sports, On Your Marks, sport workshops, family fun days and other events and initiatives. Most of these events are provided free or at a relatively low cost to participants.
Among the schools and businesses known to be getting involved with Sport Your Trainers day are Ravenscroft, Beau Sejour, Cannacord, Nerine, Oracle, Saffery Champness, Standard Chartered, States Works and the States of Guernsey, Amherst, Beechwood, Blanchelande, Castel, Hautes Capelles, La Mare De Carteret, Le Rondin, Melrose, St Martins, Vale and Vauvert.
Any money raised by today's Sport Your Trainers fundraising will be supplemented thanks to the news confirmed this week of an increase grant to be given to the Guernsey Sports Commission.
The Committee for Education, Sport and Culture has said it will commit to funding the PE in Schools programme beyond 2018 with £200,000 a year funding securing the popular scheme.
That is double the amount the programme currently receives.
PE in Schools is run by the Guernsey Sports Commission and it is currently funded through corporate sponsorship, which will come to an end later this year.
Following that, ESC will provide increased funding from 2019 to ensure the PE in Schools programme continues in every primary school and it will also be expanded, including to St Anne’s in Alderney for the first time.
ESC said "PE in Schools will continue to be delivered through a partnership between schools and sports development officers. Schools will now have greater access to sports professionals, coaching opportunities and professional development, with the equipment and kit they take into schools also being upgraded."
President of ESC, Deputy Matt Fallaize, said "I think most people would agree with the Committee that all students should have access to high-quality PE and sport in schools. Therefore the first objective of this investment is to secure the future of the PE in Schools programme. Without this investment the future of PE in Schools would be highly uncertain. In addition we are responding to powerful recommendations from schools and sports professionals about what could be achieved by enhancing the programme."
Deputy Fallaize (pictured) acknowledged the hard work of all the staff at the GSC, adding; "this programme is greatly valued by schools and students and emphasises the clear links between education and sport, which the Committee is fully committed to developing.
"The Committee is grateful to the tremendous work of the Guernsey Sports Commission since it started this programme in 2010 and we look forward to continuing to work in partnership with the Commission in delivering PE in Schools and on many other initiatives."
ESC is facing significant financial challenges however, and Deputy Fallaize said this extra funding for the GSC cannot detract from the reform needed within Education, Sport and Culture to ensure savings are made.
"The Committee is always conscious of the well-publicised budget challenges it inherited when elected in February," he said. "As I have said many times, these challenges will be met only through genuine reform. This work is well under way in areas such as reorganising secondary and post-16 education, gradually reducing public funding of the grant-aided colleges and restructuring the Education Office. Some of these reforms may help improve the budget position as early as this current year and in the long-term they will go a long way to meeting all of the budget challenges we inherited. What we are not going to do is cut front-line services in essential areas and PE and sport in schools falls into this essential category."
Jon Ravenscroft, Chairman of the Guernsey Sports Commission, (pictured) said:
"The Guernsey Sports Commission has achieved an extraordinary amount with a limited budget thanks to the dedication and enthusiasm of so many under the stewardship of Graham Chester and past chairmen. I wouldn’t have agreed to become chair had it not been for the energy and commitment of the team to do their best for the health and wellbeing of Bailiwick youngsters.
"With private funding for the PE in Schools programme coming to an end in December, it was facing an uncertain future and so it was an absolute priority to find the funds needed. To secure this commitment from the States has been a real team effort by the commission, Deputy Fallaize and his committee and the civil servants and I want to thank everyone for pulling together to achieve this incredible outcome.
"The Sports Commission team has exciting plans for the programme."
The increased States funding means the PE in Schools programme will be further expanded. Kim Hutchinson, Headteacher of La Mare de Carteret Primary, said that is great news: "Exposing children to positive, fun experiences in the school environment as they progress from learning to run, jump, throw and balance to then applying those skills to a range of activities and sports is so important for their motivation, self-esteem and confidence. This new programme will provide significant support to our primary schools as they encourage children along that journey to what we hope will form a lifelong love of physical activity."
The PE in Schools programme was established in 2010 by the Guernsey Sports Commission. In 2017, sports development officers delivered more than 1,000 sessions to 1,250 children in primary schools. The enhanced programme follows consultation with head teachers, sports development officers, colleagues working on health improvement and students.
The Committee’s announcement comes as the island approaches the three-year countdown to the Guernsey Island Games in 2021 - the largest sporting competition the island will have hosted in nearly 20 years.
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