Norfolk And Suffolk Schools To Get £5 Million Sports Funding

16 March 2013, 06:00

Primary schools in Norfolk and Suffolk are to receive millions of pounds to fund sports programmes to inspire athletes of the future.

Its part of a £150 million project announced by the government to transform primary school sport that will improve coaching for the youngest pupils and inspire the Olympic and Paralympic stars of the future.

The new sports funding aims to improve the quality of provision in every state primary school in England. This means: A lump sum for each school, with a per-pupil top-up. A typical primary school with 250 primary aged pupils would receive £9,250 per year.

This is the equivalent of around two days a week of a primary teacher or a coach's time - enough to make sure every pupil in the school can do sport with a specialist.

The funds can only to be spent on sport which will go directly into the hands of heads and teachers who will decide what is best for their children's needs. This could vary from specialist coaching and teacher training to dedicated sports programmes, Change4Life sport clubs and support for after-school or weekend competitions.

There'll be tougher assessment of sport provision via Ofsted to ensure the funding is bringing the maximum benefit for all pupils, with schools held to account for how they spend the money.

Sport England investing £1.5 million a year of lottery funding through the County Sport partnerships to help Primary Schools link up with local sports coaches, clubs and sports governing bodies.

Work will begin in September 2013.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: "The Olympic and Paralympic Games marked an incredible year for this country and I will always be proud that we showed the world what Britain can do.

"I want to ensure the Games count for the future too and that means capitalising on the inspiration young people took from what they saw during those summer months.

"With this new approach to sport, we can create a culture in our schools that encourages all children to be active and enjoy sport,and helps foster the aspirations of future Olympians and Paralympians.

"Whether that is the future Jessica Ennis, Ellie Simmonds or Mo Farah, or someone who will simply learn to love sport and exercise for a lifetime, this investment will benefit a whole generation of children for many years to come."

There have been wide-spread calls for an investment to made into primary school sport and the announcement was welcomed by sports and education groups, and leading figures in the world of sport.