Activemark, Sportsmark and Sports Partnership Mark
Sport England and the Departments for Education and Skills (DFES) and for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) consulted on proposals to develop and reintroduce Activemark, Sportsmark and introduce a new Sports Partnership Mark. The proposals received strong support.
The two key changes are:
First, the kitemarks will in the future reward delivery of the national PE, School Sports and Club Links strategy. That means they will only be open to schools which are directly benefiting from the strategy by being within a Schools Sport Partnership;
Second, the kitemarks will be awarded annually, automatically through the national school sport survey, which all partnership schools take part in. This means that schools will not have to complete a separate application form. This will reduce the burden placed on schools.
The key indicator determining whether a school qualifies for one of the kitemarks will be its success in enabling pupils to take up their entitlement to at least 2 hours of high quality PE and school sport each week. Schools will have to demonstrate, as a minimum, that 75% of pupils take part in at least two hours of high quality PE and school sport. But the final standard will be agreed after the school sport survey has been completed.
Primary schools will also be assessed on: the range of sports/activities (including dance) they offer; and how many pupils are participating in club sport.
Secondary schools will also be assessed on: the range of sports/activities (including dance) they offer; how many pupils are participating in club sport; how many pupils take part in competitive school sport: and how many take on volunteering and leadership roles.
Each year, a small panel will meet, after the school sport survey has been completed, to agree the standards schools and partnerships will need to demonstrate in order to be awarded one of the kite marks. The panel will be made up of: a primary school head teacher; a secondary school head teacher; a special school head teacher; and representatives from the Department for Education and Skills, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Sport England, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Youth Sport Trust, the Association for Physical Education; and from a national governing body of sport.
