Sporting youngsters get more exercise than national average

Date published: 19 October 2009

Pupils in Rochdale running the extra mile and staying ahead of their national counterparts.

More than three in five, five to 16-year-olds at schools across the borough are taking part in three hours of “quality” PE or out-of-school sport.

Nationally, 51% of pupils take part in 180 minutes of intensive exercise, compared with 62% in Rochdale..

The Government had wanted every pupil to take part in at least two hours but have since raised the bar after success across the country.

The new findings, published as part of the PE and Sport Survey 2008/09, has led ministers to raise the benchmark to five hours per week by 2011/12.

Ministers said they are raising the standard on youth sport in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics and attributed the progress to “huge improvements” in school sport and £2.4bn in funding up to 2011.

Schools Minister Iain Wright said: “We are aiming high for our young people because they deserve nothing less.

“This won’t be easy, but no true sporting success ever really is.”