Leading sports stars back Labour’s plans to reverse damaging decline in PE access for young people

Today (Monday 22 April), leading sporting stars have backed Labour's plans to promote equal access to sports, including football, and their commitment to ensuring every child can engage in physical activity during school hours.

The joint letter, co-signed by sporting stars like Sir Clive Woodward OBE, Clive Tyldesley, Lucy Ward and Maro Itoje, backs Keir Starmer's plans to reform the curriculum and deliver 6,500 more teachers to reverse the damaging decline in young people accessing team sports like football. 

The intervention comes after Starmer declares patriotism a force for good in fostering the next generation of sporting talent. The sense of confidence, pride and patriotism that English sport instils in our young people, Starmer says, is clear for all to see and is a force for good.

Hailing the power of pride in communities, Starmer today hosts a flagship Shadow Cabinet meeting outside of Westminster in a location deep within the English countryside. 

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Text of the letter:

Fostering a passion for sports among the next generation is not only crucial for the nation's physical and mental well-being, but it also plays a pivotal role in cultivating future world-class sporting talent. However, the concerning trends of diminishing physical education (PE) hours, disparities in participation rates between state and independent schools, and gender gaps in sports engagement demand urgent attention.

Therefore, we enthusiastically embrace Labour's commitment to promoting equal access to sports, including football, for girls and their dedication to ensuring that every child can engage in physical activity during school hours.

Their proposed reforms to the curriculum, aimed at safeguarding subjects like PE, sports, and art in state schools, along with the ambitious plan to deploy 6,500 specialist teachers to elevate teaching standards nationwide, are essential in reversing this downward trend.

Access to sports shouldn't be a privilege, but a universal source of joy and key factor in a healthy active lifestyle for all.

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