Stronger together
The Chief Medical Officers’ physical activity guidelines for disabled young people, released in 2022, highlight the importance of at least 20 minutes of physical activity per day which is meaningful, enjoyable and inclusive for all. But what does this activity look like? For many young people, they are encouraged to participate in active travel, a Daily Mile or traditional sporting activities focusing on the cardiovascular benefits of physical activity. However, the guidelines emphasised the firm evidence of the benefit for disabled young people engaging in manageable strength and balance activities three times a week.
But what could this look like and what wider benefits could this bring?
As part of the Inclusion 2024 programme, funded by the Department for Education, the Youth Sport Trust has been exploring the concept and importance of strength and balance from the perspectives of disabled young people, teachers, teaching assistants, parents and National Governing Bodies of Sport. Together they have been exploring what manageable strength and balance activities include, and the challenges and benefits of implementing these activities for young people.
Hosted at the Youth Sport Trust’s Lead Inclusion School Clare Mount, Specialist Sports College in Merseyside, a roundtable provided opportunities for pupils and staff to share what strength and balance means to them. Empowered to then co-design activities fulfilling these definitions and to be completed in the school environment, these pupils then tested out their ideas with their peers. This approach captured both the pupils’ and practitioners’ understanding of strength and balance, taking into consideration their thoughts on why and how these activities should be embedded into the school day.
Pupils shared a range of perspectives when exploring the concept and meaning of strength and balance, as reflected by one young person: “strength to me isn’t just about physical strength but mental strength too, to get through activities each day. It isn’t just about lifting weights either, but strength and balance help my other activities like sitting on my horse to go horse riding, in swimming lessons and being able to do dancing.”
After completing the series of activities created by herself and her peers, another pupil said “it would be amazing if we could do these in our lessons every day because it can be boring sitting in the same place for a long time.”
By using basic equipment or everyday items you might find in an average classroom, the activities designed by pupils require minimal set up. Sharing her reflections on the ease of incorporating this into her one-to-one support, Nat Evans, a 1:1 Applied Behavioural Analysis Tutor at Clare Mount said “I found it really interesting to see where the students needed help with strength and balance; it inspired me to do more activities like that.”
“The pupils were engaged and pushed out of their comfort zone to perform their ideas in front of the others. I think it would be really beneficial for more schools to be involved and be inspired by the activities created by the pupils and captured on the videos.”
This enthusiasm was shared by Jon White, Teacher at Clare Mount Specialist School: “Clare Mount Specialist Sports College pupils and staff have been actively engaged and involved in co-creating and co-designing activities to achieve the Chief Medical Officers’ guidelines, which has included the designs of poster infographics and the development of strength and balance activities.”
“It is so important to hear the voices, thoughts and feelings of pupils with additional needs who these guidelines are designed for, to understand what types of activities they think will support physical literacy and provide motivation, but most of all so that they are involved and can contribute to their own health and wellbeing through physical activity. It has been fantastic to be involved at nearly every stage and we are grateful to the Youth Sport Trust for the opportunity to contribute.”
Valuable collaborators on the day and beyond included British Judo, Pentathlon GB and Sport for Confidence. Through their expertise as governing bodies of sport and experts in the field, they were able to provide their specialist knowledge to shape the activities.
Maddie Thompson, Club Support Officer at British Judo said: “I think people understand the terminology of strength and balance regarding a fitness base. However, there is a lack of understanding regarding the benefits for everyday life, and how easily accessible and quick some of the activities can be.”
“Observing the young people participate in strength and balance activities demonstrated how being active could help reset and focus the group. The fact the activities were short and didn’t require many resources allowed them to be accessible in many environments within the school day. Young people with disabilities benefit from doing strength and balance activities as it supports and empowers their everyday lives. Simple tasks we might overlook can be really helpful in increasing independence. British Judo is a sport based on understanding balance and how to break balance so many of our activities incorporate strength and balance activities and we are excited to develop this further.”
But how can schools get started? The Youth Sport Trust recently hosted a free Inclusion Live recorded webinar highlighting the evidence behind the Chief Medical Officers’ guidance and exploring the thoughts of educational practitioners involved in the initial pilot. Once the principles are understood, consideration into how to embed activities into the daily infrastructure of schools is critical, for example, could a sensory circuit be built into the timetable for active brain breaks? Are strength and balance activities already part of the Physical Education curriculum? Through the voices and choices of young people, and the expertise of British Judo and Pentathlon GB, could you consider codesigning part of the curriculum to focus on strength and balance activities?
See some examples below:
The significance of strength activities for the physical health of disabled young people is evident and highlighted in the Chief Medical Officer’s guidelines, as is the enjoyment and sense of achievement these activities provide in addition to traditional cardiovascular exercises. By incorporating basic strength and balance activities into the broader school environment beyond just Physical Education, schools can support more disabled young people to achieve the recommended levels of daily activity and ensure they can access the many benefits which come from being active. You can find out more information about the Inclusion 2024 programme here.