Sky Sports Living for Sport
Background Information
Recognising the power of sport and the role it can play supporting schools with the work they are doing to support targeted groups of young people. The Youth Sport Trust works with a variety of partners and in a long standing partnership with Sky, have developed the successful Sky Sports Living for Sport programme.
“Sky Sports Living For Sport uses the spirit of adventure and creativity that sport provides to engage targeted groups of young people who maybe struggling, for whatever reason at school through a structured programme of activity.”
‘Living for Sport’ was originally a programme, launched in 2003, to support identified schools use sport and athlete role models as motivational tools to improve behaviour. By the summer of 2008 it had been accessed by 500 schools. In October 2008 the programme was re-launched as ‘Sky Sports Living for Sport’ (SSLFS) and now is fully accessible to all secondary schools in the UK with over 1100 schools registered on the website.
Schools involved in SSLFS use the website to support them through a number of steps enabling them to run a sport-related intervention programme for a targeted group of young people:
- Each school determines a cohort of young people (avg size 10-15), between the ages of 11 and 16, that they feel need some specific support and for whom sport could offer the motivation and inspiration they need to address a key behaviour, attitude or achievement objective.
- The lead teacher within the school then works with colleagues and the young people to set some individual targets and goals that each young person is expected to work towards and whose progress is monitored against.
- They use sporting activities as the intervention to support and encourage each young person. During this period the school will receive a visit from one of the Sky Sport Living for Sport Athlete Mentors who will have an agreed key role in the project. They also receive free kit for the young people involved.
- Each school is encouraged to run a sports event which the young people take ownership of. This develops their leadership and responsibility skills as well as increasing their profile positively within school with both staff and peers.
- At the end of project each school is encouraged to host a celebration event to recognise the progress of the young people.
The Sky Sports Living for Sport team at YST and Sky have worked hard over the last 18 months to continue to develop the offer that is made to schools through the website and make it an attractive tool to add value to schools and the project planning process. Through this development work there has been an increase in the flexibility of the programme so that it can now be used with a wider number of young people, not just those ‘underachieving’ in a traditional sense. There are now four themes of the programme, which support schools to identify young people. These are:
- to increase attainment and achievement
- to develop self esteem and self worth
- to improve health and well being
- to enhance aspirations and reach full potential
There is no doubt of the programme’s success and value within the School Sport Network. In particular, the role that the Sky Sports Living for Sport Athlete Mentors play within the programme is a key element for the young people and their teachers.
For more information please visit or email or contact 01509 226650