Local leisure centre chosen as venue to host Hampshire School Games
Winchester Sport & Leisure Park was amongst some of the counties top venues to be selected to host the annual Hampshire School Games Physical Activity Festival, with over 1,000 children in attendance.
The centre, managed by Everyone Active in partnership with Winchester City Council, hosted the event alongside the University of Winchester on Thursday 23 June.
The programme, led by Energise Me, a local charity that champions physical activity, is a great opportunity for local school children to experience different sports. The games inspire young people to be physically active for life through positive experiences of daily activity and displays the wide range of opportunities available to them beyond school sport.
This year, the Hampshire School Games was targeted at less active young people who do not usually engage in exercise. Over 110 schools were invited to select 10 young people to attend.
Chloe Davanna, Active Communities Manager at Everyone Active, commented:
“To be selected as a venue to run the Hampshire School Games is fantastic. We are pleased to be able to encourage physical activity in young people and hope that the day inspired our participants to try something new and gain confidence in staying active.
“We’d like to thank Energise Me for organising the event and the local clubs and governing bodies that took part in running the sessions.”
Sharon Robertson, Head of Children and Young People at Energise Me, added:
“Our vision for the Games this year was to offer an opportunity for a really positive experience for less active young people and I feel that we certainly achieved this.
“It was brilliant to see so many children of different abilities all loving physical activity and having such a good time, smiling, laughing, challenging themselves and trying something new.
“An event of this size and scale could not happen without so many fantastic volunteers and it was great to see young leaders from schools and colleges from across Hampshire, running and helping with activities and supporting the logistical aspects to putting on the event, they were all such great role models.”
Cllr Lucille Thompson, Cabinet Member for Business and Culture said:
“We now have the perfect sport and leisure facility in Winchester to be able to accommodate such large-scale events such as the Hampshire School Games. Showcasing this state-of-the-art facility to such a wide range of schools will not only increase participation, but also the enjoyment in physical activity and exercise.”