A school in Warrington has revealed how it has used sport and physical activity to successfully target poor behaviour and attendance.  William Beamont Community High School & Specialist Sports College has been using the Sky Sports Living For Sport programme in order to target disadvantaged pupils.  The school looked at the type of young people who needed support such as those who were disaffected from lessons or with low self esteem problems and encouraged them to participate in the programme. 

The aim of Living for Sport is to encourage pupils to take on different sporting activities in order to help them engage with other aspects of school life.

For those on the scheme the school wanted to achieve objectives such as:

• Better prepared pupils when entering KS4
• More confident individuals
• Development of leadership skills and sporting leaders of the future
• Improvement of communication skills
• Pupils with greater self awareness and better life skills

The school has managed to achieve great successes in the project, including more than 50 per cent of one Living For Sport group having 10 per cent or more increase in attendance.

Living For Sport Coordinator Phil Shaw explained “We first looked at Living For Sport in KS4 as a sticking plaster effect but have since moved down to KS3 to target kids before they get to the really important years of school life”

Pupils on the programme took part in two lessons per week-one predominantly a PE lesson and the other looking at topics such as healthy eating and team building skills.

Director of specialism Craig Milburn added “We wanted to get the kids better prepared at the end of year nine for their GCSEs and engage them and give them confidence- particularly kids with low self esteem.  In KS4 we then try to develop participation in sports related leadership activities and improve social skills by going on trips and camping”

At the end of the programme, the group went on a camp residential which they had helped to plan in their lessons.