In their latest Active Lives Children and Young People Survey Report, Sport England have found that only 47.8% of children and young people are meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guidelines of participating in physical activity for an average of 60 minutes or more per day. Staffordshire falls into the most active proportion of the country, with 50.1% (or higher) of children and young people participating in physical activity for 60 minutes or more per day, and Time4Sport are just one organisation that are contributing towards this.
Instead of being inactive during their time off school, holiday activity camps are a great way for children and young people to get their activity minutes in, and have a great time doing it too, Operations Manager Matthew Kelter explains:
“During the school holidays, parents want to encourage their children to do a bit more and get more active,” he begins.
“These children need somewhere to go, and they need to mix with other children. Of course, when these children are at school, they get used to mixing with the same peers that are in their class, but when they attend our holiday clubs they can mix with other children from different schools and potentially make new friends.”
As well as improving our physical health, it’s no secret that taking part in physical activity has mental health benefits for all ages.
Being active and participating in regular physical activity can make us healthier and happier, can boost our confidence, calm the mind and combat emotions such as anger and frustration, and can help us develop our social skills by interacting with new people.
Time4Sport believe there’s a sport or physical activity for everyone. Their dedicated team undergoes extensive CIMSPA-endorsed training to ensure they provide the best possible experience for all. They regularly adapt games to match participants’ age, ability, and skill level; their goal is to create a fun, welcoming, and inclusive environment where children of all backgrounds can come together and enjoy active play. Matthew continues:
“We get lots of different children that come from lots of different backgrounds it’s all about being inclusive and having lots of fun together.
“All children can be a part of the games we play – we play adapted games so everybody can join in together.”
Local partnerships
All of Time4Sport’s work revolves around their aim of creating fitter, healthier and happier futures. To do this, their local partnerships are key.
Part of their work includes working in partnership with Staffordshire County Council, the local authority for that area. Recent data from the council states that in their locality, 25% of Reception-aged children (ages 4-5) have excess weight, which increased to 34% by Year 6 (10-11).
Together, they are addressing this local priority. Through their local authority-funded programme Time 4 Wellbeing, families with children aged 2-17 who live in Staffordshire can apply to access free support services from Time4Sport’s health and wellbeing team. The programme can help families to create realistic and healthy changes, including meal plans and to encourage sport and physical activity participation.
Working across a plethora of schools in Staffordshire and Cheshire, the community organisation can empower thousands of school children to increase their participation in sport and physical activity.
For example, in one school alone, Physically Active Learning Co-Ordinator and Educator Adam Steadman delivers lunchtime clubs, after school clubs, PE activities, and even English and maths interventions that have a physical aspect involved. There are multiple opportunities for children and young people to get involved in a form of physical activity throughout the day, on the school grounds.
Adam reflects on his work at Seabridge Primary School:
“All of the programmes have taken off really well.
“Our aim is to grow confidence, ultimately. One of the best things about being a PE teacher and coach is children who come in a little bit shy and nervous to begin with, but then after so long they come in and are comfortable; they know what’s going on and they’re just buzzing to go.”
Working and recruiting locally
As a Staffordshire local himself, Founder Wayne Glover has always wanted to have a career in the sport and physical activity sector:
“I’ve always loved and enjoyed sport, but I was never good enough to become a professional. So, instead I decided to provide sporting activities for people locally and understand the benefits of participation not only just physically, but mentally as well.
“My goal was to offer opportunities for local children, young people and families to be physically active.”
Wayne has gone from attending his local primary school as a pupil, to delivering external sports sessions there as a coach and owner of his own business.
Whilst he was completing his BA Sports and Development degree at Staffordshire University, he undertook a placement at a local school as part of his studies. It was here where he realised that there is a gap in the market for a local community sport provider.
From here, the spark lit to develop Time4Sport. After putting together a business plan and presenting it to his university, he received some funding to kickstart the organisation and success followed.
