HC Deb 17 May 2004 vol 421 cc711-2W
Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to(a) increase the percentage of pupils spending at least two hours a week on physical exercise and school sport and (b) increase the time children spend on exercise; and if he will make a statement. [171447]

Mr. Stephen Twigg

The Government are investing more than £1 billion in England to transform PE, school sport and club links. The funding will help deliver an ambitious Public Service Agreement target, shared with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, to increase the percentage of 5–16 year olds 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 is the creation of a network of 400 specialist sports colleges and School Sport Partnerships. There are six other interlinked programmes within the strategy which are designed to help schools and their partners ensure pupils take up their PE and sports entitlement:

  1. 1. Professional Development
  2. 2. School/Club Links
  3. 3. Step Into Sport
  4. 4. Gifted and Talented
  5. 5. Swimming
  6. 6. The QCA PE and School Sport Investigation

Learning through PE and Sport provides a comprehensive guide to the strategy and a copy has been placed in the House Library.