One of our key ambitions at Active Oxfordshire is for every child in the county to have 60 active minutes, every day. We are very pleased to be playing a key role in co-ordinating £113,000 of funding from the Department of Education/Sport England to support schools in Oxfordshire to open up their facilities and help more children and young people be physically active during evenings and weekends.

The investment will help schools deliver extra-curricular activities and open their facilities outside of the school day, with a focus on the least active, areas of deprivation and schools with a high % of free school meals.

We are working closely with School Sports Partnerships, SGO's/LA's and multiple partners to identify the schools where we can have the biggest impact on the activity levels of children and young people. Examples of the delivery planned includes Junior Wheels for All in West Oxfordshire to run inclusive cycling opportunities for children with disabilities and supporting children with the transition from primary to secondary school through physical activity. Another key focus will be providing opportunities for Year 7 pupils who missed out on swimming lessons during Year 6 due to COVID-19, with the aim of improving their ability to swim 25m. We look forward to seeing the impact of the project and the valuable learning and evaluation that can help to guide future work with schools in Oxfordshire.

Richard Claydon, Business and Programme Manager at Active Oxfordshire, says:

"We know that COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on children's activity levels, which fell to an all-time low during the pandemic. By supporting schools to open up their facilities, we can provide children with extra opportunities to get active during evenings and weekends. This funding is a fantastic opportunity to work creatively with schools, families and local communities to give every child in Oxfordshire the active life they deserve."

We'll be updating regularly with news, blogs and case studies as work progresses, so watch this space!