PE & School Sport

The Government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) guide to learning through PE and sport takes the form of the PESSCL Strategy (Physical Education, School Sport and Club Links).

The strategy - jointly delivered by the DCMS and the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) - focused on 8 key strands with the intention that all children, whatever their circumstances or abilities should be able to participate in and enjoy physical education (PE) and sport. Its main aim was to increase the percentage of school children aged 5-16 in England who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum to 75% by 2006. The target was achieved and the collective role of the County Sports Partnerships was recognised by Prime Minister, Tony Blair. (Copy of PM's letter)

The bar has now been set higher and the new objective is to increase the percentage to 85% of school children participating in at least 2 hours PE and school sport by 2008, increasing to 4 hours by 2010. The framework to help achieve this outcome will now focus on 9 key areas, details of which can be found on the following links:-

Specialist Sports Colleges - maintained secondary schools, who receive additional funding to deliver a specialist four year PE and sport development programme.
School Sport Partnerships - families of schools working together to improve sports opportunities. Each consists of one Specialist Sports College, 8 secondary schools and around 45 primary schools and is co-ordinated by a Partnership Development Manager (PDM).
Gifted and Talented - aims to improve the range and quality of teaching, coaching and learning for talented young sports people to help them to raise their aspirations, improve performance, motivation and self-esteem and strengthen their links with clubs and national governing bodies.
QCA PE & School sport Investigation - Qualifications and Curriculum Authority works with schools and partnerships to develop ways to improve the quality of PE and school sport.
Step into Sport - encourages young people and adults to begin and continue their involvement in sports leadership and volunteering.
Sporting Playgrounds - children spend around 25 per cent of the school day in the playground. By tackling inactivity, boredom and poor behaviour, improving playtimes can have a significant impact on school life. The Government has been working with the Youth Sport Trust to support three phases of playground development in primary schools across England.
Professional Development - ensures that teachers are equipped with the tools and expertise neede to deliver high quality PE and school sport.
School/Club Links - to build upon and enhance existing PE and sport opportunities available to young people in schools, and increase their involvement with NGB affiliated or accredited clubs.
Swimming - to encourage more children to be able to swim 25 metres by the end of key stage 2 (age 10).