Stafford and Stone School Sport Partnership.
In 2005, the Stafford and Stone School Sport Partnership was formed, with the hub of the Partnership being based at Stafford Sports College.
All schools in Stafford are now on board the programme with each secondary and middle school having a School Sport Coordinator.
The Partnership has many objectives and aims with some being of extreme importance in Stafford.
These include:
1: Increased participation in high quality physical education
2: Increased participation in high quality out of school hours learning
3: Increased participation in high quality informal physical activity
4: Increased participation in high quality competition and performance
5: Improved attitude, behaviour and attendance in PE, sport and whole school
6: Increased attainment and achievement in and through PE, OSHL and sport
7: Increased participation in community based sport and improved quality of community life.
Already the Partnership has made great strides. In 2005, when the Partnership came into being, approximately 48% of children were engaged in 2 hours high quality PE per week. In 2006, this figure had been increased by nearly 20%. With specific targets in place, the aim is for 85% of pupils to be participating in 2 hours high quality PE and School Sport by 2008 - an increase of nearly 100%!
School Sport Partnerships
School Sport Partnerships (SSPs) are groups of schools working together to develop PE and sport opportunities for all young people.
A typical partnership consists of:
- A partnership development manager (PDM);
- School Sport Co-ordinators (SSCos);
- Primary and Special School Link teachers (PLTs).
A PDM is a full-time role usually based within a Sports College. They manage the SSP and develop strategic links with key partners in sport and the wider community.
An SSCo is based in a secondary school and concentrates on improving school sport opportunities, including out of hours school learning, intra and inter-school competition and club links, across a family of schools.
PLTs are based in primary and special schools and aim to improve the quantity and quality of PE and sport in their own schools.
There are now 400 Specialist Sport Colleges, 411 SSPs, 2464 SSCOs and 14,397 PLTs in England!