What is the School Games?

Our mission and vision

Through its 10 guiding principles, the School Games aims to:

• Make a positive difference in young lives
• Put sport and activity at the heart of schools
• Let young people learn, compete, and do their best.

What makes an activity part of the School Games?

An activity becomes part of the School Games when it:

• Includes everyone, so all young people can stay active for 60 minutes a day (20 minutes for SEND students)
• Meets local needs with flexibility to adapt to the community
• Gives students a voice, letting them lead or support the activity
• Creates a good experience, so taking part is fun and builds confidence.
• Links to local clubs so young people can continue after school
• Reflects our values, which include determination, honesty, respect, teamwork, passion, self-belief, and a caring attitude towards the planet
• Is designed with youth input, ensuring it’s age-appropriate and built by young people
• Follows sport guidelines, using standard formats set by national sports organisations.

Our three pledges

In June 2023, we launched three pledges to shape the future of the School Games. These pledges focus on:

1. tackling inequalities
2. empowering youth voice
3. building physical literacy.

Each pledge aims to help every young person find joy and confidence in being active. They reflect the strength and flexibility of the School Games network and the incredible impact schools can achieve when working together.

By listening to young people and removing barriers, we can create positive experiences that spark a lifelong love of movement for those who need it most.

Tackling inequalities

Some young people don’t feel included in the usual ways schools offer sport. These groups often miss out:

• Young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND)
• Children from low-income families
• Girls (who tend to be less active than boys from a young age)
• Young people from Asian and Black backgrounds (who are more likely to be inactive)

At the School Games, tackling these inequalities is one of our most important goals. We want all young people to enjoy sport and activity and to have positive, lasting experiences.

Data from Sport England’s Active Lives report (2022/23) shows that the gap in how active kids are is getting smaller - but there’s still work to do. Only 44% of children from lower-income families meet recommended activity levels, compared to 55% from wealthier families.

We know that each area is different, so School Games Organisers (SGOs) will use local evidence to decide how to help young people in their communities best.

Youth voice

The School Games wants to make sure every young person has a say in sport and activities at school. It’s not just about joining in; it’s about speaking up, being heard, and seeing change.

We know that PE, school sport and physical activity make a big difference. But for them to work well, we need to hear from young people, especially those who don’t always feel included or don’t join in much.

To support schools in utilising youth voice, the Youth Sport Trust has two tools to help:

• Youth Voice Plan - a roadmap to help schools, School Games Organisers, Active Partnerships and other partners use youth voice
• Youth Voice Toolkit - loaded with ideas, guidance and resources to turn students’ voices into action.

These tools are especially for working with young people who are less active or whose voices are not heard much.

Physical literacy

Physical literacy is how we move, think, feel, and connect with physical activity throughout our lives. The new Physical Literacy statement for England (September 2023) wants us to see activity in a fresh way.

It’s about more than just playing - it’s how our past experiences or situations affect whether being active feels good or not. Physical literacy helps build positive experiences in PE, sport, and everyday movement at school.

How the School Games supports physical literacy:

• We run competitions and events that aim to give everyone positive experiences
• We help children stay active throughout the school day
• Schools can work with their local SGO to help teachers and the wider school community understand and support physical literacy
• Student voice is important - involving young people helps shape how physical literacy is part of school life.

Find out more about the Physical Literacy statement from Sport England.

Support for 60 Active Minutes

The Chief Medical Officer says that young people aged 5–18 should be active for 60 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity. For disabled children and young people, it’s 20 minutes a day. These activities should be varied, so they can help:

• develop movement skills
• strengthen muscles and bones
• reduce the time spent sitting or lying down
• break up long periods of inactivity
• spread activity throughout the day

Schools should try to give 30 minutes of activity during the school day, and help students get 30 more minutes outside of school. We support schools to reach this goal by:

• running events that focus on young people who would benefit most from being more active
• creating daily activity plans to help include the least active groups
• sharing good ideas from schools that are doing well (through training, awards, and case studies)

How can School Games help you deliver 60 active minutes?

• use our free activity resources
• get resources from National Governing Bodies of sport
• talk to your SGO - they may offer staff training or tips to boost daily physical activity.