The PE Faculty intent is to deliver high quality lessons over a wide range of activities to ensure pupils have a positive experience of PE and progress at the appropriate level if not above. In addition, we aim to fill any gaps in fitness and skill development due to lessons missed during COVID.
Across Key Stage 3 and 4 our aim is to introduce and develop a wide range of core skills which allow pupils to excel in a broad range of physical activity. As the pupils progress through the Key Stage, their knowledge and understanding of the sports will further be developed to enable them to apply these skills in order to be successful.
We will educate pupils about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and how sports benefit health and well-being. Pupils will also be encouraged to be physically active for sustained periods of time to aid increased fitness levels and well-being. PE also contributes to PSHE by developing communication skills, adhering to rules, developing interpersonal skills, building resilience, developing team work, organisation, reciprocity and reflectiveness.
All pupils will have the opportunity to engage in competitive sports and activities in lessons and through extra-curricular clubs and practices. There will be an equality of opportunity for all to take part in competitive sport outside of lessons in inter tutor group sports and through our extensive fixtures programme. This will enable the most able to be further stretched and challenged.
All pupils will have the opportunity to participate in alternative sports across the 5 years through National School Sport Week, Enrichment Week, and various other trips and visits.
Common themes that run throughout the GCSE course will be introduced to pupils in Key Stage 3 to enable them to be more familiar with the content of the GCSE course, allowing them to access a lifelong understanding of Health and Fitness.
Success will be rewarded at all levels through praise, commendations through the chosen school system, the website, termly reports and sporting assemblies.
The PE Faculty wish to inspire the pupils to make them want to aspire to be the best they can be so that they participate in sporting activities for life.
Find out about each Key Stage in PE:
KS3 PE
All pupils in Years 7 to 9 receive 4 one hour lessons per fortnight. The pupils engage in a range of different sports such as Football, Rugby, Hockey, Netball, Basketball, Badminton, Table Tennis, Tennis, Rounders, Athletics, Cricket, Health Related Exercise, Dance, Gymnastics and Trampolining.
Each year the pupils will build on their knowledge from the previous year so that they can develop their skills and ability levels. PE is taught in single sex classes throughout all of Key Stage 3. Pupils are assessed in a variety of ways upon entering the school and are then placed into ability-appropriate groups. In order to maximise learning and skill development, pupils are taught a sport for a series of lessons before moving onto another activity. A range of individual sports and team sports for all pupils are included within the curriculum to engage all learners, as we place great importance on being fully inclusive.
Whilst outdoor and adventurous activities are not discretely taught within the PE curriculum, there are opportunities to participate in activities of this nature offered throughout KS3; Enrichment Week activities such as High Ropes in Year 7 and Watersports in Year 9, locally at SCOEC.
Fundamentally, within the PE curriculum we are seeking to develop the whole person through sports: teamwork, problem-solving, confidence-building, growth mindset and strategies to overcome difficulties are vital strands of the ethos of the PE Faculty, ensuring pupils are given the preparation needed for life.
KS4 PE
PE is a compulsory subject and all pupils will have 3 hours of PE lessons per fortnight. In these lessons the pupils will have 2 practical lessons per fortnight covering a wide range of sporting activities such as netball, hockey, rugby, football, volleyball, trampolining, tennis and athletics. In Key Stage 4 Core PE, pupils are given the opportunity to personalise their curriculum by selecting sports based on Performance and Participation activity pathways. These choices are made every two terms via Microsoft Teams, allowing pupils to tailor their PE experience to suit their individual strengths, areas for development, interests, and preferences. Within these lessons pupils will further develop their skills and tactics within a competitive environment. The third lesson a fortnight is a fitness lesson to ensure all pupils understand why there is a need to be fit and different ways in which greater fitness can be achieved so they are equipped with this knowledge for when they leave school and have to make life choices as a young adult.
The PE Faculty offer GCSE Physical Education and for several years have achieved outstanding results.
The PE faculty has recently introduced the OCR Cambridge National Sports Studies course as an alternative to the traditional GCSE PE course. This course has a larger coursework element, has a less science-heavy content. Course info TBC.
Extra Curricular Sport
We have a variety of Extra Curricular Sports clubs and practice sessions running after school. Read more…
Our Facilities
We have an impressive range of sporting facilities which are well-used by the school and local sports clubs. These include AstroTurf pitch, a second small AstroTurf area, extensive playing fields (maintained by the school groundsman), tennis courts, a fully equipped and generously sized Gym, a large Sports Hall and an Atrium area available for use. The faculty also has a wide range of sports equipment that is fully used to enhance and enrich the learning opportunities of pupils in Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4.
Our facilities are used by local sports clubs such as Cirencester Hockey Club, Cirencester Table Tennis League, Gloucestershire Cricket Foundation, Rubytots and more.