By Sheila Mckenzie-
Hundreds of after-school clubs are be created by the Department Of Education in a drive to keep youngsters active. School facilities will be opened up at weekends and holidays as part of new government measures to get more children active.
The D&E is committing £2.5m in 2019-2020 to deliver the extra training, including new weekends and holiday openings and the expansion of sports volunteering programmes to be expanded . PE teachers and sports volunteering programmes will be expanded to give more young people the chance to become sports leaders and coaches, the Department for Education announced today.
Sport England will invest £2 million to create the 400 after-school satellite clubs to get more young people in disadvantaged areas active. The range of new measures are designed to improve young people’s access to physical activity, and also keep young people busy. It will also provide an opportunity for young people to be taught more about the benefits of keeping fit and living a healthy lifestyle, as well as staying away from bad habits like smoking cigarettes and drugs.
It comes after the latest data from Sport England’s Active Lives Children and Young People survey showed that a third of children are doing less than 30 minutes of physical activity a dayThe government and Sport England will work with bodies such as the Football Association, Premier League, England and Wales Cricket Board and the Rugby Football Union to ensure that their clubs and programmes can reach even more children. Sport England has also pledged a £1 million funding to develop a digital resources which include a new Netflix-style library of workout videos that can be used in schools and PE lessons.
Hinds said: “My ambition is for every pupil to have the chance to find a sport they love, setting them up to lead healthy, active lives and equipping them with the skills to reach their full potential, both inside and outside the classroom.”