Following a successful initial trial run, the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture in partnership with the Guernsey Sports Commission is going to be launching the ‘Primary School Sport Partnership’ this September.
Since the new year, Hautes Capelles Primary School has been running the initiative, helping to illustrate exactly how the partnership would operate within each school.
The partnership will have £200k per year in funding, so that staff from the Sports Commission can work in schools during the scheduled school week.
The scheme will be implemented into primary schools across the Bailiwick, including Guernsey’s Special Needs School Le Rondin, as well as St Anne's school in Alderney.
Education Development Officer, Jeremy Frith, said “The funding for this project has been vital in enabling the Commission to take this significant step forwards. We are excited to be working even closer with schools, sports and other partners to provide the best possible opportunities for children in our primary schools.”
The length of time that staff are expected to be placed in schools for will inevitably vary depending on the class sizes and number of pupils.
Staff will be on hand to support PE lessons as well as to liaise with staff and parents alike, to manage the pathways of young people undergoing physical activities in school so that they can also look to experiment and enjoy sport outside of school.
“The benefits of exercise are well documented, for physical health, wellbeing and academic performance, and this coordinated and cohesive approach is an excellent initiative to raise standards and increase participation in PE and sport in schools and communities” said President of the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture, Deputy Matt Fallaize.
The ‘Primary School Sport Partnership’ is said to have been designed to further embed other health and education initiatives such as the Bailiwick Curriculum, The Big Picture and Physical Literacy Framework. The ‘Big Picture’ was itself designed to promote positive mental health and wellbeing, encouraging learning both in and outside of the classroom.
The Physical Literacy Framework was developed by the Youth Sport Trust, specifically designed to support staff in primary schools in better structuring school sport and PE lessons so that maximum opportunity is ensured and provided to all students.
Jon Ravenscroft, Chairman of the Guernsey Sports Commission is pleased to have secured the necessary funding.
“I would like to thank Deputy Fallaize, his Committee, and education officers for supporting the Commission with this programme. I am confident that through the hard work of our staff and the dedicated teachers of this island, together we will be able to provide our young people with a great start in developing an active lifestyle,” he said.
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