HC Deb 28 January 2003 vol 398 cc778-9W
Patrick Mercer

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what assessment he has made of primary movement exercise programmes; [93587]

(2) what the Government's policy is on the use of primary movement exercise programmes to alleviate learning difficulties. [93592]

Mr. Miliband

Physical Education (PE) remains a compulsory subject within the National Curriculum at all Key Stages. At Key Stages 1 and 2 its emphasis is on learning and developing basic movement skills and actions. The Ofsted Primary Subject Report on Physical Education—published in July 2002—indicated that at primary levelpupils' achievement is at least satisfactory in all but one school in 20 in both Key Stages 1 and 2".

A joint Department for Education and Skills and Department for Culture, Media and Sport public service agreement target, announced on 15 July 2002, seeks to enhance the take up of sporting opportunities by 5 to 16-year-olds by increasing the percentage of schoolchildren who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum to 75 per cent. by 2006. Spearheading action will be the significant expansion of the specialist sports college and school sport coordinator partnership programmes.

The strategy has an inclusive ethos and is designed to be flexible enough to allow children with learning difficulties—whether in a mainstream school or other—to be taught through a variety of methods which could include a primary movement exercise programme if a school decided that was the most suitable option.