School Games - engaging those in Alternative Provision and Pupil Referral Units

By GreaterSport | 23 March 2022 | TAGS: Children and young people, Stories, School Games, education

Bolton School Games Organiser at Thornleigh Salesian College Bernadette O’Hare led her area’s School Games programme to allow more young people facing social and educational challenges to get involved and reach their personal best.

Identifying the need for support for young people.

Regional data and insight gathered for the academic years 2017- 2019 revealed that only one or two alternative provisions (APs) and pupil referrals units (PRUs) had previously engaged with the School Games initiative. ‘To date, we’d had little involvement with APs and PRUs,’ Bernadette explains. ‘We wanted to provide a support package to engage young people in these settings in physical activity. National changes to the School Games outcomes led us to target more vulnerable local young people at risk of involvement in offending behaviour. The goal was to grow school engagement, create positive experiences of physical activity, and support and motivate young people.’

To drive these changes forward through shared aims, Bernadette worked closely with Active Partnership School Games Operational Lead for Greater Manchester Craig Vickers, Panathlon trainer from Bolton Wanderers in the Community Debbie Davies, Youth Sport Trust, Bolton Impact Trust, and two local schools. ‘We supported each other thanks to mutual purpose, local networking and following up contacts to allow connections to build that would help create the change,’ Bernadette adds.

Targeting the most vulnerable local groups

Once the aims were identified, Bernadette needed to engage key individuals and demographics with the programme. She highlighted two key groups in need of support. The first was a collection of eight year 10/11 boys at Lever Park Secondary School. These young people have moderate or severe behavioural needs and an education health care plan (EHCP) in place to support their social emotional mental health. ‘The majority of these boys have undiagnosed learning difficulties and suffer with anxiety and inferiority complexes, resulting in poor behaviour’ says Bernadette. ‘Some hadn’t been associated with mainstream education since a very young age, if at all, due to their socio-economic background, lack of family support, and connections with criminal and anti-social behaviours.’

The second group was 16 primary-aged children from the Forwards Centre PRU, who would then go on to transition to Lever Park. All have been excluded from school, and most have an EHCP in place. ‘These children have trouble building and maintaining both peer and adult relationships, and struggle engaging with learning and coping in classroom settings without additional strategies and interventions,’ Bernadette explains. ‘Their severe social and emotional mental health needs mean they often feel misunderstood, anxious and scared.’

Implementing the initiative in the school setting

With the target groups engaged, Bernadette worked alongside Debbie Davies to deliver the training and the School Games event at Lever Park Secondary School in autumn 2021. ‘It was important that the training and the event were held within two days of each other to keep leaders’ minds fresh and maintain focus,’ Bernadette says.

The first day involved meetings with the primary head and the secondary school PE lead to discuss objectives and potential barriers, before introducing the concept and basic leadership training to Lever Park’s students on day two. ‘To do this, we used Youth Sport Trusts’ competition-organiser training as it was familiar to the teachers and setting,’ Bernadette explains. ‘However, we adapted this to suit the needs of the children and young people.’ The School Games took place on day three, with Panathlon training and multi-sports. ‘It wasn’t overly competitive,’ adds Bernadette. ‘The focus was on inclusivity, accessible equipment and a calming influence, encouraging team achievements and personal bests.’

Chris Fielding, Academy Lead for Bolton impact Trust, who oversee both Leverpark school and Bolton PRU said; ‘The children had a really great time and wore their medals all day. It worked very well and the leaders did a very good job. They were so kind and positive with our children. It was very inclusive and every single child in our oldest two classes attended today and took part.’

Overcoming challenges to achieve success

‘The Lever Park students found it a challenge to follow rules and maintain high behavioural expectations,’ says Bernadette. ‘Yet our understanding of these individuals and their backgrounds, as well as prior meetings with the head teacher and PE lead, meant we could plan ahead. For example, we brought the programme to the pupils at Lever Park, helping them engage in a familiar setting. We also adapted our rules and expectations. This included allowing pupils to take part in the programme wearing school unform - adjusting the format to ensure safety - and providing Panathlon T-shirts for pupils to keep and wear to represent their team.’

The sense of belonging and pride was a key outcome of the programme for Bernadette. ‘Competing in a range of different activities with team focus really fostered the feeling of achievement amongst both leaders and participants,’ she says. ‘Taking part in the activities enhanced self-esteem, boosted confidence, and really gave everyone involved a changed perception about what these young people could achieve.’

Planning for partnerships for ongoing programmes

Bernadette knows the programme can be a long-term success, with key partners and community organisations already agreeing to provide support through ongoing involvement, joining task groups and boards, and strengthening existing links. ‘To make the work sustainable, we need to build our relationship with Bolton Impact Trust, and benefit from GreaterSport Active Partnership’s support for our leadership, training and delivery programmes,’ she explains. ‘Then, we need to use our learnings and good practice to encourage more APs and PRUS in the Bolton area to get involved. This will include sharing successes, liaising with our contacts, and applying for small grants to purchase event equipment and train staff so they can implement School Games within the PE curriculum.’

The schools involved to date have already developed a working partnership to raise both their profiles and the opportunities to provide competitive and non-competitive active experiences for their pupils. Bernadette also wants to set up a youth consultation group including pupils from Bolton APs and PRUs. ‘We know it’s these young people who are our true drivers for change and on whom the programme has the greatest impact,’ she says. ‘One of our young leaders spoke about wanting to become a sports coach and asked for advice about how to do it. For me, that outcome of raising aspirations is huge.’

Gaining key learnings to support similar schemes

Bernadette’s experiences can benefit others looking to work with a different audience, especially APs and PRUs. ‘Don’t be afraid of making the connection, even if relationships haven’t been formed: the majority of APs and PRUs will appreciate any support you can give,’ she advises. ‘Start small, and build up your connections from there.’

‘You also must understand the APs and PRUs’ aims, showing empathy and respecting staff need to protect children and young people,’ concludes Bernadette. ‘Talk to them, listen to their problems, barriers and restrictions, and discover their hopes for their children. Though they’re unlikely to have PE specialisms or qualifications, chances are they do have the belief and enthusiasm that sport and activity can change these young people’s lives for the better.’