Rob gets students active

30th January 2009 4:19pm - Return to press releases

A new sports co-ordinator has been appointed at East Riding College to encourage people who only occasionally or never play sport to get active.
Rob Watson will be targeting more reluctant sports men and women, with the aim of offering every young person at least two hours physical activity every week.
One of his key objectives is to overcome the inactivity which many young people slip into when they finish year 11 and no longer have compulsory sports sessions at school or college.
The further education sports co-ordinator role, funded by the Youth Sports Trust for an initial three years, also involves linking with secondary schools sports co-ordinators and local community projects.
One of Rob's first steps is to carry out a wide-ranging survey among the College's 16 to 19-year-old population of more than 1,000 to find out which activities would interest them.

Rob said: "This project is about more than just putting on extra sport for people who already take part in it regularly.
"I'm trying to get through to the people who are less attracted to physical activity and to encourage them to adopt a healthy lifestyle."
He added: "We already offer a wide range of sports for those who want to take part and we regularly have other activities such as rock climbing and white water rafting.
"I want to find out what else we can do to get young people active and to stop them dropping out of physical activity."

Rob, 23, is a former East Riding College student who passed the BTEC National Diploma in Sports Fitness and Development before doing a BA in Sports Development at Leeds Metropolitan University.
As well as getting more young people involved in physical activities, he is aiming to increase opportunities for inter-college and intra-mural sports and to encourage more young people to become involved in sports and activity leadership and volunteering.
East Riding College has an "enrichment" afternoon every Wednesday, when no classes are held and a variety of sports and other activities are arranged.
Enrichment officers also arrange days out and trips away which involve hiking, canoeing and similar outdoor pursuits.  

Jayne Molyneux, national development manager for the Youth Sports Trust, said: "The main focus of the FE sport co-ordinators (FESCos) is to increase opportunities for young people aged between 16 and 19 in education to participate, perform and lead and volunteer in sport.
"Of the 377 FE colleges, a staggering 94 per cent of colleges have indicated that they want to be part of the programme." 

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Notes to editors: For more information, call Matthew Croshaw, marketing and communications manager, on 01482 306612.