FIVE HOURS OF SPORT A WEEK FOR EVERY CHILD

13 July 2007
A £100m campaign to give every child the chance of five hours of sport every week was announced by the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown today.

He called for a ‘united team effort’ in the run up to 2012 to make sport a part of every child’s day. Building a greater sporting nation and a fitter nation. Involving schools, parents, volunteers, coaches and the sports world to offer the equivalent of an hour of sport to every child, every day of the school week.

The plans include greater emphasis on competition within and between schools, a network of competition leaders and a new National School Sports Week, The new funding will provide:

Up to five hours of sport per week for all pupils and three hours for young people aged 16-19

A new National School Sport Week, championed by Dame Kelly Holmes where all schools will be encouraged to run sports days and inter-school tournaments. This will build on the success of the UK School Games and its impact on motivating young people to take part in competitive sport

A network of 225 competitive sport leaders across the country to work with primary and secondary schools to increase the amount of competitive sport they offer

More coaches in schools and the community to deliver expert sporting advice to young people.

The Government will also challenge the sporting bodies to develop modern school sport competitions leading to local, regional and national finals. The new funding builds on the £633 million already committed to creating a world-class school sport and PE system over the next three years.

The PM said: “We need to put school sport back where it belongs – as much a part of the school day as algebra and Shakespeare”.


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