Only three Scottish councils giving pupils two hours of PE every week

Published on Monday 27 July 2009 22:03

THE Scottish Government has been accused of "failing to deliver on key promises to Scotland's pupils" after it emerged that only three of the country's 32 local authorities have formally agreed to deliver two hours of PE for every pupil, every week.

Information obtained by the Scottish Conservatives shows only North Ayrshire, Argyll and Bute, and Angus councils mention the SNP's manifesto pledge in their Single Outcome Agreements – individual contracts for funding between councils and government.

The latest blow to the SNP's education policy follows the revelation that three quarters of councils ignored class sizes in their latest agreements with the Scottish Government.

The data received by the Tories also shows Angus Council is only achieving one hour a week of PE, while North Ayrshire only expects 65 per cent of primaries and 50 per cent of secondaries to meet the two-hour pledge by next year.

A spokesman for the EIS, Scotland's largest teaching union, said: "Promoting health and well-being through physical activity is a key priority for all schools, so it is disappointing such a small number of local authority outcome agreements make any reference to the Scottish Government's physical activity commitments.

"Just like the pledges on smaller class sizes and increased teacher-led nursery education, the Scottish Government-Cosla concordat and related single outcome agreements are failing to deliver on key promises made to pupils, parents and teachers."

The SNP's election manifesto states: "To help Scottish children develop the habit of physical fitness we will ensure every pupil has two hours of quality PE each week delivered by specialist PE teachers."

Last night, Liz Smith, the Scottish Tories' schools spokeswoman, said: "Recent evidence presented to Holyrood's health committee made it crystal clear this policy is in chaos.

"At a time when there are serious concerns about the health of young people in Scotland, the failure to provide adequate PE in so many schools will have much wider implications for society."

However, schools minister Keith Brown said: "These Tory claims are inaccurate.

"Two hours of PE is covered in the Concordat rather than Single Outcome Agreements and has been a planned outcome of the new Curriculum for Excellence since before the SNP even took office – it was explicitly written into the guidance provided to the authors of the new curriculum as far back as September 2006.

"We committed to this policy in our 2007 manifesto and our commitment to it has not changed at any point – which is why it is part of the Curriculum for Excellence and is being progressed. To claim otherwise is to ignore reality."