Bristol schools given £2.8 million for sports coaching to support next generation of Olympic stars

EVERY state primary school in the Bristol area is to be given a slice of £2.8 million funding for each of the next two years to support the next generation of Olympic and Paralympic stars.

Schools within Bristol City Council’s boundaries will be handed a total of £888,100 this year and next, South Gloucestershire schools will share £816,000, North Somerset primaries will get £550,600 and a total of £543,600 will go to schools in Bath & North East Somerset. In total schools in the Bristol area will receive £2,798,300 per year.

The handouts, which will consist of a lump sum for every school plus top-up funding based on the number of pupils, will be worth £9,250 to a school with 250 pupils.

The funding, totalling £150 million per year across the country, was announced today by Prime Minister David Cameron, as an Olympic legacy scheme aimed at improving the quality of sports coaching provision in every state primary school.

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Announcing the payments, Mr Cameron said he wanted to “capitalise” on the inspiration youngsters took from the London 2012 Games.

He added: “With this new approach to sport, we can create a culture in our schools that encourages all children to be active and enjoy sport, and helps foster the aspirations of future Olympians and Paralympians.”

Double gold medallist Mo Farah said: “It is great to see a commitment to funding school sport and that it is something I passionately believe in. I am very excited to know that lots of children will be able to get involved in sport while at school and get more help from teachers and coaches. It really is very important.”

Fellow gold medallist Jessica Ennis said: “This latest funding for primary schools sounds fantastic – so many of them have no funds for PE and hopefully now whether in an inner city or small rural community young kids will be introduced to fun ways to be active that will spark an interest in taking part in sport as they grow up.”

The cash, called the Sport Premium, is “ring fenced”, meaning that it cannot be diverted to pay for other things and will be paid directly to school heads and teachers.

The government estimates it is enough to fund two days a week of a primary school teacher or a coach’s time and make sure every pupil in a school can do sport with a specialist.

Tougher assessment of sport provision through education watchdog Ofsted is promised to ensure the funding is bringing the maximum benefit for all pupils, with schools held to account for how they spend the money.

The bill for the funding will be split between the Department for Education, which will pay £80 million, the Department of Health, which will pay £60 million and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which will pay £10 million this year and next.