Government to triple funding of school facilities
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A national network of 240 specialist sports colleges will be operating within three years and every secondary school in Britain will have a specialist sports co-ordinator within five years, the Government announced yesterday. Annual spending on school sport will triple to fund the developments and will amount to £492m over the next three years.
A quarter of schools already have co-ordinators – whose sole job is to expand sporting opportunities in schools – but this will increase to 75 per cent of schools by 2006 and 100 per cent the following year.
Additionally by 2006, all pupils aged five to 16 will be offered at least two hours of PE a week and most schools will be teaching 12 or more sports. Some 3,000 sports coaches will be trained to come into schools and help teachers, while nearly 500 primary school playgrounds will be modernised.
The 240 specialist sports colleges will have close links to local sports clubs and organisations and will offer their students high-class facilities and expert tuition. One such establishment already up and running is the Collegiate High School Sports College in Blackpool, from where Tony Blair made yesterday's funding announcement. "School sports matters," the Prime Minister said. "That is why this investment is so important. It is not just about more champions. It is also about healthier children, more opportunity, and keeping young people engaged and out of trouble."
Tessa Jowell, the Culture Secretary, added: "This is a huge vote of confidence in the power of sport to make a real contribution to people's lives."
The Government's last involvement at a major sports project came last week, when Jowell attended the launch of the new Wembley. Some £161m of public money has gone into that venture, equivalent to a year's worth of school funding announced yesterday.
The Blackpool college is a state comprehensive with 1,400 pupils. A £2m private-public partnership has funded state-of-the-art facilities for sports ranging from football and cricket to tae kwon do and dance aerobics. A leisure company, Vida, provided £650,000 of the funding and uses the school's facilities in the evenings and holidays on a commercial basis.
"It's needed a dramatic change in political thinking to allow it," John Lea, the school's deputy headmaster, said. "The Governors were insistent that we remained a comprehensive, non-selective school. We don't pick the children on the basis of their sporting abilities, they choose to come here because of the opportunities we offer."
The new specialist sports colleges are likely to reserve some places for students with outstanding sporting talent.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments