What we do

The Vale Royal School Sport Partnership was established in September 2005 in order to increase the number of children and young people taking part in at least 2 hours of high quality Physical Education and School Sport.

Our partnership consists of 56 schools and colleges: 2 further education colleges, 7 secondary schools, 41 primary schools and 6 special schools, which are predominantly in the Winsford and Northwich areas.

The partnership is lead by Chris Story, Partnership Development Manager who coordinates activities across the area with the support of a Competition Manager and Administration Assistant. Each college and secondary school has appointed a member of staff (Further Education Sport Coordinators and School Sport Coordinators) who supports the work of the partnership and Primary Link Teachers in primary schools complete this team.

In achieving the 2 hour target we aimed to increase the quality of the curriculum and support schools in raising the time allocated for PE; help to engage more children and young people in sport by extending the range of activities offered by our schools; allow more children to take part in after school activities and competition; to develop young leaders who can support the work of schools and community providers; and to increase the links between education and community clubs.

Where are we now?

Over the past 3 years the schools belonging to the Vale Royal School Sport Partnership have been contributing to the government target of ensuring 85% of children and young people take part in at least 2 hours of high quality P.E. and school sport every week.

The data collected from last academic year shows that not only did schools in the partnership meet this target but we collectively reached 91%! Many more schools have this year achieved the quality standards Activemark and Sportsmark. Now 44 out of  possible 54 schools have the mark, also meaning that the School Sport Partnership was awarded Sports Partnership Mark for exceptional delivery within the PE, School Sport and Club Links Strategy. On behalf of children and young people within the partnership we would like to say 'Thank you' to Primary Link Teachers, School Sport Coordinators and Headteachers for their hard work in achieving this!

Where next?

With the 2 hour target met (and huge sporting events such as the London Olympics in 2012 on the horizon) we will now be aiming to get children and young people into even more sport and physical activity. The new '5 hour offer' gives us an opportunity to link up the high quality activity children take part in at school with the excellent range of community activities there is on offer in Vale Royal.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families, alongside the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, will maintain funding for SSPs and invest a further £100million for the next 3 years to help us continue and extend our work.