Minister impressed by Active Schools in the Borders
Friday, July 21 2006
Patricia Ferguson, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, visited Eyemouth Golf Club today (Thursday 20 July 2006) and was impressed with the activities available to youngsters through the Active Schools initiative in the Scottish Borders.
Patricia Ferguson, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport, visited Eyemouth Golf Club today (Thursday 20 July 2006) and was
impressed with the activities available to youngsters through the Active Schools initiative in the Scottish Borders.
“Enthusiasm and commitment is what Active Sports is all about. It is giving youngsters the passion, tools, motivation and opportunities to be more active throughout their school years and into adulthood. The Eyemouth model is a really successful example of this in practice and I am most impressed with the work of the co-ordinators and youngsters in Eyemouth.”
The minister observed golf coaching in practice, led by Club Professional, Tony McLeman and assisted by Mark Colin. She then
received some coaching herself with a masterclass from Mark Collins, a senior pupil at Eyemouth High School and Junior Team
Captain for Scottish Borders. To the delight of the youngsters, she then put her training into action, narrowly missing
a hole in one on her first putt.
After a successful pilot in Kelso, Active Schools has been rolled out to every area of the Borders and has proved extremely
effective in establishing close links with local community sports bodies. Eyemouth, in particular, has developed excellent
links through the co-ordinators Paddy Dearlove and Colin Richardson, and this integrated approach has seen a 200% increase
in participation in the holiday activities programme.
During the summer holidays, the Active Schools and Sports Development Team are running over 90 different events across the Scottish Borders, providing more than 700 sessions, ranging from Hip Hop Street Dance to tennis, football and athletics. In addition, the seven swimming pools run by the Borders Sport and Leisure Trusts are running swimming schools and funs sessions on an almost daily basis throughout the summer. There are also a number of sessions specifically to encourage children with disabilities to try a multi-sport programme at Jedburgh Grammar School.
Full details of the summer sports and physical activity programme are available from the Sports Development Unit in Galashiels (Tel: 01896 756274) or by email from holidaysports@scotborders.gov.uk. The summer sports brochure is also available in all libraries and details can be downloaded from the Council website: www.scotborders.gov.uk
sportScotland works closely with Scottish Borders Council to develop, support and monitor the Active Schools network and ensure pupils have sufficient opportunities to get active to the extent that it makes a positive contribution to their health. These opportunities are available before, during and after school, as well as throughout the summer and winter holidays. [more]
For more information on the Active Schools programme, please contact Doug Folan, SBC’s Sport, Health & Physical Education Manager on 01835 824000 ext 5033.
Unified Solutions.