£1bn boost to PE and school sport to end fitness postcode lottery

More young people will have access to high quality PE and school sport under the government’s new PE and School Sport Partnerships Network, which will bring national sporting expertise into every primary and secondary school to tackle inactivity. 

The investment includes £200 million to improve school sporting facilities, as well as £580m for a new PE and School Sport Partnerships Network to tackle inactivity in every primary and secondary school.  

Carl Hawkes, CEO of YSF said:  "As the Active Partnership working with partners to support children to enjoy an active and healthy life across SY and WY, it was encouraging to hear the announcement on the government's commitment to delivering a new vision for PE and School Sport.

"Most importantly, it offered further clarity to schools and the wider PE and Sport networks on the future of the PE Premium. We look forward to working closely with schools and partners to support them through this transitional period and ahead of the new network being fully operational from Spring 2027."

The government is investing over £1 billion in school sport over the next three years, including funding for the new Partnerships Network, improvements to school sports facilities and support for primary schools as we move to the new approach. 

Backed by £580 million and set to be fully up and running from Spring 2027, the Network will replace the existing PE and Sport Premium and put an end to the one-size fits all model that has failed too many children for too long, while meeting the ask of leading voices in sports education. 

Responding to longstanding calls from schools, a further almost £200 million will go towards improving school sporting facilities, which could be used to make facilities more accessible for children with SEND or additional equipment, alongside a one-off £100 million PE Premium payment to support primary schools during the transition year. 

Less than half of young people get the 60 minutes of activity a day they need – with girls, those with SEND and those from disadvantaged backgrounds impacted the most, and by the time children reach the end of primary school, 1 in 5 are living with obesity, despite successive governments investing billions through the PE Premium over the past decade. 

The shift is part of the Education Secretary’s wider school reforms, with children getting a broader and richer education, including greater emphasis on the importance of sport and music and also builds on the government’s ambition to help raise the healthiest generation ever.