Open statement to the Prime Minister

24/07/19

Following the appointment of Boris Johnson as Prime Minister, afPE’s CEO, Sue Wilkinson MBE has shared the following statement on behalf of the Association for Physical Education:

“We would like to congratulate Boris Johnson on being elected to the position of Prime Minister. We realise that there are phenomenal challenges for the PM to address and prioritise, but the health and well-being of everyone should always be at the forefront. Therefore, we hope that the Association for Physical Education (afPE) will continue to work with Government to ensure that physical education, school sport and physical activity are embedded at the heart of school life. All three are inextricably linked and research from across the world clearly articulates the positive impact of being physically competent and active has, on a plethora of outcomes for young people.”

 

“Young people are the future of our country and we believe they should all be entitled to be physically and emotionally well, as these contribute to improved outcomes such as resilience, character, confidence and decision making skills to name but a few. We believe our children and young people must be able to compete with the rest of the world so that they can secure employment and become valued citizens.”

 

“The new Ofsted inspection framework will help to identify those schools that have improved children and young peoples’ personal development, spiritual moral social and cultural skills which enable them to be excellent British citizens. Through offering a broad and balanced curriculum which is created to meet the needs of all pupils, positive outcomes will be met and exceeded. We have already received huge financial investment and we must continue to identify best practice and exemplify appropriate governance. The effective use of the funding must be regularly monitored to ensure maximum impact on the lives of children and young people. We know that we still have a large hill to climb!”

 

“We look forward to working with Government to support changes that are required so that we can do different things together, rather than the same things differently. Sustainable impact is the key to ensuring we are making progress so that we are not still facing the same issues in ten years time.”