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The Big Picture
What is Active Schools?
What Active Schools is all About?
Active Schools works with schools and communities to ensure children start active and stay active. The fundamental aim of Active Schools is to offer children and young people the opportunities and motivation to adopt active, healthy lifestyles, now and into adulthood. These opportunities are available before, during and after school, as well as in the wider community. Active Schools also aims to introduce more physical activity into daily lives through sports, active travel, dance and play.
Sportscotland manages the Active Schools Network nationally and has a strong partnership with Scottish Borders Council and Borders Sport and Leisure Trust to develop and support Active Schools throughout the Scottish Borders.
The Key Outcomes & Areas of Focus
Active Schools are working towards two aims:
· To continue to increase opportunities for all children and young people to be engaged in physical activity and sport
· Strengthen pathways to participation and performance through sustainable school to community links
Active Schools look to achieve their outcomes by concentrating on 4 areas of work.
1. Building a sustainable infrastructure of volunteers, coaches and resources.
2. Providing opportunities for school age children to participate in physical activity & sport and creating pathways from the school to the wider community to ensure lifelong participation.
3. Increasing participation amongst “hard to reach groups” by adopting a targeted approach.
4. Embedding the effective integration, planning, management and delivery of Active Schools.
More information about the origins of Active Schools and the Active Schools network can be found on the SportScotland Website
The Role of the Coordinator
Active Schools Coordinators (ASC) have a variety of roles within the schools and communities. ASC can:
Support
A teacher, volunteer, community coach or senior pupils are expected to take the lead role with the ASC providing support and advice.
Deliver
This involves the full time commitment from the Active Schools Coordinator during the delivery of a programme within the school or community.
Train
The Active Schools Coordinator will lead in the organisation and implementation of a CPD training programme, including active schools courses (TOPs, Clubgolf, Start to play) and National Governing Body Courses (Hockey Leaders, Mink Kickers, NIP Cricket).
Coordinate
Active Schools are responsible for planning, organising, and supporting activities within the cluster including after school clubs, festivals, training courses. The responsibility is to ensure the smooth running of programmes and events. Coordination may take the form of being present at activities particularly in the initial set up.
Promote
The Active Schools Coordinator, must always take a lead role in publicising all events, competitions and training initatives where possible.Through posters, leaflets, newsletters and local press ASC will continue to relay information to schools and the local communities.
The Borders Active School Team
Scottish Borders Council and Border Sport and Leisure Trust in partnership with sportscotland have invested in Active Schools through to 2015. This has allowed a staff structure to be developed which consist of an Assistant Manager, 3 secondary Coordinators and 7 primary Coordinators covering all Border schools.
Find out more about the Active Schools Team and who your local Coordinator is.
