The article discusses ukactive’s role in the Opening School Facilities (OSF) programme, a Department for Education initiative aimed at increasing access to school sport facilities for young people and the wider community.
Dr. Esme Tuttiett, a Research and Data Analyst at ukactive, explains that their primary focus is on collecting qualitative data to understand the broader impact of the programme beyond just numbers. This involves conducting focus groups with children and young people participating in the programme as well as interviewing adults involved, such as teachers, support staff, external coaches, and parents.
Since the start of the current year’s programme, 23 focus groups have been held with 124 young people, and 35 adults have shared their thoughts. The research has revealed several positive outcomes:
- Diverse activities like parkour, tag archery, and roller skating have engaged children who might not typically participate in traditional sports.
- The programme has successfully involved girls, children with special educational needs and disabilities, those on free school meals, and those from ethnically diverse communities.
- Participants have reported increased confidence and improved mental health.
- School staff and parents have noted improved attendance and behaviour among children in the programme.
Dr. Tuttiett emphasises the importance of increasing physical activity levels in children to build healthy lifelong habits. The qualitative data collected by ukactive will help support children and address barriers to keeping active and healthy in future iterations of the programme.
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