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No 10 hopes pledge of £150m a year under Tory government will reassure headteachers that funds will keep coming after 2015
David Cameron has pledged £150m a year in primary school sport funding guaranteed until 2020 if the Conservatives are re-elected, to secure the Olympic and Paralympic legacy.
A two-year dedicated English primary school PE fund was announced in March and began in September 2013, but there has been uncertainty in schools over whether the funding will stop after the election, and some headteachers have been reluctant to take up the funding this year or undertake any capital investment.
Figures show that almost a third of school-age children in England are overweight and 14-20% are obese. An Ofsted report last year said a third of primary schools were failing to provide effective PE for pupils.
Downing Street hopes the election-contingent guarantee will reassure headteachers that the cash will keep coming after 2015, and so start hiring more specialist sports teachers. It was stressed that it was not a coalition commitment but one being made by Cameron.
The guarantee suggests the Tories would set aside £750m for school sport across a five-year parliament. The money is supposed to go directly to primary school headteachers so they can decide how best to use it to provide sporting activities for pupils.
Downing Street claims that a typical primary school with 250 pupils this year is receiving £9,250, the equivalent of around two days a week of a primary teacher or coach's time – enough to make sure every pupil in the school can do sport with a specialist.
Cameron said: "Sport is so important because it encourages children to be active, lead a healthy lifestyle, make friends and, of course, have fun. But quality school sport has benefits that spread right across the curriculum and beyond – it develops confidence and a sense of achievement, it teaches young people how to rise to a challenge, and nurtures the character and skills that will help them get on and succeed in life.
"It's an important part of our long-term plan to deliver the best schools and skills for young people. That is why I am committing to guarantee the primary school sports funding until 2020."
Downing Street assembled an array of sports figures to welcome his commitment. The double Olympic champion distance runner Mo Farah said: "School sport is massively important for children and so it is good news to hear there will now be funding available over the long term. The help I got at school was a key part of how I got to where I am today and so it can make a big difference."
The prime minister's Olympic and Paralympic legacy ambassador, Lord Coe, said: "I am delighted that the prime minister has made this commitment to continue to invest in school sport until 2020. We wanted to use London 2012 to inspire a generation to choose sport and ensuring that children get a positive and engaging experience in primary school of physical education and sport is key to this. A long-term commitment to continue this funding can only help to achieve this."
