Renfrewshire School of Sport Education (RSSE) is a sports coaching training and education programme for post-16 pupils still in full-time education. The programme consists of 3 hours of training a week over a 20 week period. During this time, the participants are given the opportunity to develop their leadership, communication and social skills – all essential skills for sports coaching, but also invaluable transferable skills for life and work. The young people then volunteer in local school and communities to influence and inspire the next generation to be more physically active and healthy. This has resulted in the delivery of an ever-growing, sustainable and diverse programme of sports and physical activity across Renfrewshire Council, an essential contribution to developing strong and sustainable communities.
PLANNING / · a clear rationale, defined processes and focus on stakeholder needs· contributes to organisation’s goals and addresses current or emerging challenges
One of Renfrewshire Council’s strategic objectives is, ‘We will improve the physical and emotional wellbeing of local people through improved access to relevant services and opportunities.’ The concept of the Renfrewshire School of Sport Education (RSSE) was developed partly a result of this commitment from our council, but also as a result of the demand from children and young people to be more physically active. To meet the demand, coaching capacity had to be increased to create more sporting opportunities. In 1997, Renfrewshire Council piloted the school sport coordinator programme, which essentially was the creation of a network of coaches and volunteers to assist schools in the development of school sport and physical activity. The work undertaken in this network between 1997 and 2004 naturally evolved, and provided a sound planning basis for the creation of the Renfrewshire School of Sport Education. This was based on the national Active Schools Programme. Senior pupils within schools were deemed to be one of the many key influencers who could make a difference, and as such they were targeted and encouraged to take part. To ensure the continued success of the project, an application was made to the European Commission in 2004. Renfrewshire School of Sport Education was one of only 13 successful projects in Great Britain to gain financial support to be able to establish the model, and take it forward.
The next planning steps for RSSE involved:
- Building on existing successes and good practice – a review was carried out on the activities and sports being offered within the RSSE programme and the Active Schools programme. Qualifications and training for the RSSE students were tailored to suit this. Contact was made with National Governing Bodies of Sport and local clubs who provided the same activities and pathways were developed. Four sports were chosen and have become the core programme of RSSE – badminton, rugby, hockey and tennis.
- The continued development of the training programme evolved as the programme expanded. Active Schools Coordinators were trained to become tutors in a variety of other activities. This financial commitment to the training of staff enabled the programme to become more varied and also more sustainable.
- To ensure the success of the programme, monitoring and evaluation from the students was built into the programme to highlight what worked and what didn’t. This has resulted in continuous improvement over the years, as the information is used annually to shape the core training programme. As a result, the training programme is wide, varied and adaptable to ensure quality, consistency of approach and that it provides equitable provision across all communities, partners and organisations who engage in the programme.
Going forward we will continue to work on the key areas identified and look to:
- Capitalise on the legacy for sport which has emerged from the Olympic Games and proactively link with the Commonwealth Games agenda.
- Develop the links within the community to ensure the programme is meeting local needs.
DELIVERING / · implemented in all relevant areas and across all the required stakeholders
· carried out in a structured and logical way , using robust and sustainable methods
In delivering the RSSE, students involved in the coaching had to participate in a formal recruitment process. Successful students are asked to attend a selection and interview day comprising of team building activities, communication tasks, leadership task and discussion forums. Each secondary school in Renfrewshire can nominate up to 10 students at this stage of the process. The selection and interview day takes place of 3 hours and is conducted by the Active Schools Coordinators (ASC). After the interviews the ASC discuss every individual and make decisions on their suitability for the course based on interview performance and application. Up to 20 students are then selected for each of the 3 area courses. Students are sent a provisional place and asked to attend an information evening with parents/carers where the course is outlined in detail and a question and answer session is provided. After this evening students are asked to confirm their place on the course.
The course takes place within 3 areas of Renfrewshire to serve all of the schools – 49 primary, 11 secondary and 3 special schools. The areas are Johnstone and the Villages, Renfrew and Erskine and Paisley. The course takes place in the evenings and is based in 3 of the secondary schools, 1 in each of the areas. A twenty week programme is provided to the students with 15 weeks of training, including a residential weekend and a sports specific coach education weekend. A 5 week coaching experience follows the training and each student identifies their own placement within their community or a school. The students gain valuable experience working alongside experienced coaches, whilst simultaneously receive mentoring. Students are engaged in the training and education syllabus and receive a variety of leadership awards and coaching qualifications. In addition their voluntary contribution is recognised by Volunteering Scotland, Saltire Awards Scheme.
The programme benefits from existing links with key partners within the community such as local clubs, the Leisure Trust and in particular schools. Partnership working helped increased the impact of the training and education within school based sport programmes. Students have been tasked with organising, planning and delivering Renfrewshire’s Gateway to the Games event which is a 4 day sports competition for primary, secondary and special school pupils. This event attracts up to 1000 pupils and continues to grow. In 2007, the first year of the event only 300 pupils participated in one day. The event continues to grow in numbers, increase in range of sports provided, attract new and different partners and access more local facilities to allow it to expand.
As the work of the RSSE has naturally evolved and developed over the years, there have been additional improvements and enhancements along the way. For example, in 2004 the students that were assisting with the provision of coaching in primary schools provided added value by either increasing the capacity to include more pupils in certain sports or expanding the pupil’s experiences by introducing different sports. Over the years this has improved in range and students volunteer at primary, secondary and special schools, community sports hubs, local sports clubs, uniform organisations as well as providing volunteer support at council sporting events such as the 10k, Additional Support Needs (ASN) Boccia Championships, Got to Dance Event, “I’m a P7 get me out of here”, Track and Field championships, sports festivals, sport leagues, as well as the Renfrewshire Leisure holiday break sport camps. This demonstrates the key contribution the RSSE makes to the local community. Volunteer coaches are continually mentored throughout their involvement with any partner and are constantly provided with feedback and guidance to ensure a quality provision is given to all partners. In return for working with the partner agencies the volunteer coaches are provided with incentives such as gym passes, pool lifeguard and other qualifications.
INNOVATION + LEADING PRACTICE / · Demonstrates leading practice, and is capable of replication elsewhere· Achieves genuine innovation or new ways of working
RSSE is innovative and sector leading within the Active Schools Network across Scotland. Similar models have been replicated in a number of local authorities; however RSSE is referred to as the ‘Rolls Royce’ model that others strive towards. The programme has demonstrated a positive impact, and not just in the area of building capacity in sports coaching and provision across Renfrewshire; but also in providing pathways for young people to develop within, and through sport.
The volunteer coaches have contributed to an increase in the number of physical activity and sport opportunities available, and this year Renfrewshire Council was able to report that approximately 148,000 participation sessions were delivered to children and young people at breakfast, lunchtime and afterschool clubs. In 2005, prior to the RSSE students being involved in the delivery an average of just 55,000 sessions were recorded by Sportscotland – so have almost tripled! Through the programme schools have been influenced to develop a more customised model in the provision of alternative educational opportunities within the curriculum. This taps into the theme of Health and Wellbeing within the Curriculum for Excellence. Currently, the programme is being adapted to be more inclusive, for example, pupils who have been excluded from mainstream education will still have the same sporting opportunities within their educational experience.
RESULTS + IMPACT / · a convincing mix of customer and internal performance measures· demonstrates how better outcomes are being achieved
· a full range of relevant results– either already achieved or with potential to deliver over time
From 2004 to present 280 students have graduated, gaining 4,100 coach education awards and delivering approximately 30,000 recorded hours of volunteering. Of the 280 students that have graduated from Renfrewshire School of Sport Education 105 of them are still delivering sport and physical activity sessions to children and young people. Of these, 38 former students are now employed by Renfrewshire Council as part-time sports coaches and contribute to the national priorities of the Active Schools Network as well as the local authority Service Improvement Plan. Renfrewshire School of Sport Education students have contributed to the involvement of approximately 9100 children participating in sport and adopting healthy lifestyles in Renfrewshire. RSSE not only provides training and education through sport, but in addition there is a strong element of nurturing the students in respect of their interpersonal skills, self-esteem and confidence.
Another example of impact is the Renfrewshire School cross country and road race events. This year 36 of the 49 primary schools and all 11 secondary school participated in the event. Over 1,000 runners participated in each event - one takes place in November and the other in March. In 2005 neither of the above events was available for primary aged pupils. An average 9 of the 14 then secondary schools participated. The increased involvement of schools in these events over the years has been due to the increase of the number of jogging and running clubs within the school sport programme. Thirty six schools now provide an experience in jogging and athletics clubs. Participation amongst girls and young women is also a national active schools priority and Renfrewshire Council has reported that 51% of participants are now girls compared to 48% in 2005. This can be related to the number of female role models that are involved in Renfrewshire School of Sport Education. 134 of the 282 students were female. This has also had an impact on community clubs and 2 football clubs have established girls sections this year as well as supporting a primary schools girls only football league and a secondary schools one. Girls rugby has also proved popular and 91 girls are now involved in the rugby development programme which was established 2 years ago.
The model has achieved notable success, and has been presented at various forums for sport, health and volunteering. In 2010, a presentation to the Active Schools National Network was made at a Sportscotland conference and a workshop provided for the delegates. Also in 2010 RSSE was one of 10 projects chosen as a national case study by Sportscotland and was researched by Loughborough University who are commissioned to evaluate the Active Schools programme every 3 years.
RSSE has developed into being a pro-active tool for developing sports education and engaging with our young people. Once trained the young people go back and reinvest their skills in their local community. Sharing what they have learnt in terms of sport, health, fitness, teamwork, communication and leadership; thereby contributing to the development of a stronger and more sustainable community.
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2013 Page | 1
COSLA EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2013 Page | 1