Friday 7th January 2011

Local Schools benefit after Government U-turn on School Sport Partnership funding.

Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins, who serves on the Shadow Education Front Bench, has spoken out after Michael Gove, the Education Minister, announced in the House of Commons that the School Sport Partnership programme would now continue until at least next summer.

It was announced in October that the SSP would be axed from March 2011, bringing to a close the £162 million programme focused on raising sport participation in schools and improving the health of young people across the UK.



Brookfield Community School, a Specialist Sports College had taken part In the scheme and reported hundreds of additional students taking part in activities such as table tennis and learning about the importance of diet and fitness and Toby Perkins had held emergency talks with the school about the scheme during a national campaign opposing the cuts. High profile sports celebrities Dame Kelly Holmes and Darren Campbell had also spoken out.

Now, in what is seen as a staggering climb down, Michael Gove announced that the Government had decided to allocate a further £47 million to keep the SSPs going until next summer. The minister also intimated that schools would be given £65million to cover two years of additional sports teaching after existing funding, under the School Sports Partnership, ends in the summer.

Toby Perkins commented, "This is a partial success for the thousands of young people across the country who currently benefit from the SSP programme, getting fit and enjoying all that comes with an active lifestyle.

"On the one hand, the Government has admitted the folly of their original decision to cut this programme. On the other hand, there is no guarantee that SSPs or additional spending to improve sporting participation in schools will exist in any significant way after the Olympics.

"This would be a hammer blow to any real Olympic Legacy and a huge backwards step for youngsters of all abilities and backgrounds".

Mark Tournier, who is Partnership Development Manager at Brookfield School also welcomed the move, saying "I am pleased the Government has recognized the impact School Sport Partnerships have made on the lives of young people in Chesterfield. The announcement of further funding supporting a School Sport Coordinator type role is a small step in the right direction."

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