The Government has been providing funding since September 2013 to provide new, substantial primary school sport funding. This funding is being jointly provided by the Departments for Education, Health and Culture, Media and Sport, and will see money going directly to primary school Head Teachers to spend on improving the quality of sport and PE for all their children and to develop healthy lifestyles.
The purpose of the funding is that schools will have to spend the sport funding in improving their provision of PE and sport, but they will have the freedom to choose how they do this.
Funding for schools will be calculated by the number of primary aged pupils (between the ages of 5 and 11) as at the annual census each January.
Based on a full year all schools with 17 or more primary aged pupils will receive a lump sum of £8,000 plus a premium of £5 per pupil. Smaller schools will receive £500 per pupil.
Schools will be held to account for how they spend the sport funding. Ofsted has strengthened its coverage of sport and PE within the Inspectors’ Handbook and supporting guidance, so that schools and inspectors know how sport and PE will be assessed in future as part of the school’s overall provision offered. Schools must publish, on their website, information about their use of the PE and Sport Grant allocation. Schools should publish the amount of grant received; how it has been spent (or will be spent) and what impact the school has seen on pupils’ PE and sport participation and attainment as a result, to help to ensure that all pupils develop healthy lifestyles.
Schools will be able to draw on the information on effective practice taken from case studies provided by the very best schools.