Partner Article

Young Ashington sport champs scoop national gold award

Pupils and staff at Hirst Park Middle School in Ashington are celebrating after receiving ‘GOLD Partner Status’ from the ‘Youth Sport Trust’ for their outstanding commitment to PE and school sport.

To become a gold partner, Hirst Park Middle School staff and students have met rigorous assessment criteria to demonstrate how they are delivering high quality school sport and improving the PE experience for all pupils and, most importantly, how they are using sport to raise achievement levels.

The Youth Sport Trust is an independent charity committed to changing young people’s lives through sport. Established in 1994, the organisation exists to help young people throughout the UK to achieve their full potential in life by delivering quality physical education and sport opportunities.

Leanne Gonzalez, head of PE at Ashington Hirst Park Middle School, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be awarded gold partner status through the Youth Sport Trust. It recognises our commitment to delivering the best possible experiences for our pupils through PE and school sports.

“Our recent Ofsted Report judged the sports provision in school as outstanding and this prestigious award really reinforces that. It’s another fantastic accolade for us and the wider Ashington Learning Partnership.

“When P.E. and sport is delivered well, it creates a whole range of educational, health and wellbeing benefits, encouraging young people to live healthy, active lives, as well as helping to improve attainment levels across the curriculum.”

The Youth Sport Trust has driven many improvements in PE and school sport over the last decade. The charity, whose patrons include Baroness Sue Campbell CBE, Olympic gold medallist Denise Lewis OBE and world-class athletic champion Darren Campbell OBE, is continuously looking at new ways to inspire youngsters to participate, compete, volunteer and officiate in sport.

Now that Hirst Park Middle School has achieved Gold Partner Status, it is a beacon of best practice for other Schools within the Ashington Learning Partnership and the wider region. It will also receive additional training and development opportunities and benefit from involvement in national education and sporting initiatives led by the Youth Sport Trust.

Hirst Park Middle currently has 24 ‘Young Ambassadors’ aged 10 to 13 to champion physical education and involvement in school sport to their peers. The youngsters have been specially selected due to their talent, exceptional commitment and ability as young volunteers.

Next month a delegation of young ambassadors from Hirst Park will travel to London to take part in film-making workshop through the charity’s ‘Sky Sports Living for Sport’ project, which targets young people aged 11-16 who are at risk of opting out of school life, either through poor attendance or lack of confidence. The group have been tasked to make their own film about the benefits of participation in sport.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Amy Maughan, Contributor .