Sports & PE

Windermere Primary School has a genuine commitment to encouraging healthy lifestyles. Our children receive, on average, two hours of high quality P.E. over the course of each week. Through P.E. the children become increasingly aware of the importance of exercise and healthy lifestyles, come to understand the importance warming up and cooling down, and evaluate their own performance and the performance of others.

We achieved the Silver School Games Award in 2019 and were recognised for our ongoing commitment and achievement in the autumn and spring terms of the 2019/2020 academic year. In addition we received recognition for our support, commitment and engagement of virtual programmes during the summer term of 2020.

Sports Premium

The school receives £17,720 Sports Premium each year.   The school’s action plan for Sports Premium ensures that this is spent in a way that promotes sporting activity for all pupils.
This funding has been used to:

  • Purchase new sports equipment
  • Provide training for school staff to improve the teaching of PE
  • Provide specialist coaching in particular for sports clubs after school
  • Provide engaging and motivational sporting activities for all pupils in addition to the usual curriculum provision
  • Access sporting competitions and festivals

As a result of this expenditure more children than ever are participating in sport and PE, resulting in healthier lifestyles. Our achievement in this area and our commitment to quality PE provision was recognised when the school was awarded the Silver School Games Award in 2019.

The Sports Premium funding has enabled us to offer free lunchtime and afterschool sports clubs through our specialist coaching provided by Game On and Premier Education. As a result, sports coaching is available to all year groups from Year 1 to Year 6.

As part of our partnership with Game On they also offer free or heavily discounted holiday sports camps for our pupils.

As a consequence of these initiatives, more pupils are participating in after school clubs and are entering local sporting competitions. We regularly enter teams into district athletics, tag rugby, cross country, netball, football and triathlon events. They are also engaging in more physical activities at lunchtimes and playtimes, using the outdoor gym equipment as well as the wide range of small sports equipment that is available.

Each year a week is designated as a Sports Week. This is not only an opportunity to raise the profile of PE and sport, but also to trial new sports such as fencing, wheelchair rugby and yoga.

PE Curriculum

Games, gymnastics and dance are all embedded within our core P.E. curriculum and are delivered through a balanced and progressive scheme.

The children develop a growing understanding of how to apply tactics in game situations, and develop increasing control with basic skills and techniques as they progress through the school.

See the curriculum page for more information on the PE curriculum.

  • In games the focus in Reception Key Stage 1 and Lower Key Stage 2 is on building the key skills that can be applied to a range of games situations in four main areas. As the children progress into Upper Key Stage 2 the scheme of work then focuses on specific sports. Basketball, netball, baseball, rounders, badminton, short tennis, hockey, football, tag rugby and kwik-cricket are all taught through the four areas of invasion games, target games, net and wall games and striking and fielding games. Game On coaches teach an hour of games in KS1 and lower KS2 each week.
  • In gymnastics and dance the focus is on performing controlled movement through the acquisition of progressive skills. Gymnastics and dance are taught alternately each half term following specific themes. See the curriculum units of study below.  In the current pandemic, indoor PE activities are restricted, so the curriculum has been revised and restructured so that gymnastics and dance will place later in the academic year.
  • All classes enjoy a range of athletics activities in the summer term.
  • Our Lower Key Stage 2 children receive swimming lessons each year which take place at Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre. Year 4 will have swimming lessons in the autumn and spring terms and Year 3 has swimming lessons in the summer terms.

Annual events

  • In the autumn term, the children take part in a whole school Cross Country run. Distances range depending on the age of the children, progressing from Reception, who run a 400m circuit on the school field, to Years 5&6, who follow a 1500m course that would normally take them them out of the school grounds and around a marshalled route before returning back to school. The children thoroughly enjoy participating and every child takes part, not only running, but supporting their peers. Parental support is always welcomed.
  • At Windermere the Annual Sports Day, towards the end of the summer term, is a popular event. Children compete in their four house teams. The morning of Sports Day consists of a carousel of activities and the afternoon is made up of more traditional track races. All children are centrally involved, taking part in all of the carousel activities as well as the traditional races. Parents are welcome to attend the afternoon’s track events and add to the already fantastic atmosphere.

Extra-curricular programme

We have a strong extra-curricular programme of sport. There are several sports clubs run after school and at lunchtimes – football, netball, tag rugby, kwik-cricket, rounders, athletics and multi-sports. Some are run by school staff and qualified parents and some by qualified coaches from either Game On or Premier Education. In addition we offer holiday sports activity days run by Game On at very reasonable rates.

Representative teams

Windermere regularly competes in netball, football, cricket, tag rugby and cross country leagues, as well as the Annual District Sports Tournament. Win, lose or draw, all of our sporting activities are epitomised by outstanding sportsmanship which is frequently acknowledged by referees, umpires and organisers.