By Mike McCann, PE Teacher at Douglas Ewart School

A survey conducted by Fit for Girls, an initiative aimed at raising physical participation among girls aged 11 to 16 years, has revealed that over half of the girls questioned had not participated in the government recommended one hour of physical activity each day. Many had not even taken part in an extra-curricular activity or sport in the preceding week.

Leading UK carpet manufacturer Heckmondwike, part of National Floorcoverings Ltd is using its proven track record in the education sector to introduce its sister division Playrite who specialise in synthetic surfaces for  sport and leisure.

This year, teachers are gearing up to get their whole school involved in the biggest year of sport with the help of our fantastic free Schools Fundraising Resource Packs – available to order online at sportrelief.com.

They’ve got everything a school needs to hold a brilliant event for Sport Relief on Friday 23rd March 2012, including a fundraising guide, promotional posters, balloons, stickers and exclusive materials to decorate your Sainsbury’s Sport Relief Mile in school.

BESA releases ‘PE and Sport Resourcing in Schools’ research.

Schools are finding the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP) target of five hours per week increasingly unrealistic despite the forthcoming Olympics, a new survey has found.

In spite of the aim of the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP) to give every school pupil access to five hours of PE and sport every week, 60 per cent of primary and 57 per cent of secondary schools are finding this increasingly unrealistic.

New research sponsored by BT Coaching for Life, has found football to be the most sociable sport, with 59% of children who play football regularly having 17 friends or more. Three quarters of those parents described their kids as active and sporty.

Coaching for Life programme is aimed at 6 to 11 year olds, and encourages parents and carers to help children try different sports. The programme also includes 12 flexible games available as a downloadable application.