Staffordshire Moorlands Lifestyles Festival Proves To Be A Huge Success

On Tuesday 12^th June a ‘Lifestyles’ festival took place at Park Middle School in Biddulph, Staffordshire. Over 600 pupils, parents and teachers from all the cluster schools attended and had a fantastic night out. Local clubs from Biddulph and the surrounding area promoted their clubs and encouraged new members to join them. There were a number of demonstrations and workshops that took place throughout the evening including various martial arts, cheerleading, dance and fitness. There were also taster activities of football, cricket, sailing and golf. Pupils and parents made the most of the opportunity to try out the range of activities and see what clubs they would like to join.

The aim of the event was to increase participation in sport and raise awareness of local clubs. This was achieved successfully and will hopefully result in an increased participation in community sport and clubs. Further links with the clubs are now being developed and future work will see additional clubs in schools and more opportunities for pupils to try out new and exciting activities they will enjoy.

The “Lifestyles Festival” was an evening event that aimed to:

• Develop school – club links and encourage more children to participate in OSHL Community clubs
• Aid the transition to the middle school.
• Establish relationships with and encourage the involvement of parents.
• Address an area of weakness after analysing PESSCL data.
• Get an early start in making links and working towards the 2010 ambition of providing opportunities for 4-5 hours of physical activity for every pupil.

The event was an excellent networking opportunity and enabled clubs to make positive contacts with school staff, and will provide a contact for us to monitor new membership. Such was the success of the event that it will hopefully be repeated in all clusters throughout the Staffordshire Moorlands Partnership.