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Fall in number of hours of PE delivered in schools poses threat to wellbeing

A male PE teacher speaking to a group of school ages children

The Youth Sport Trust believes cuts to the hours of Physical Education on the curriculum pose a further threat to the wellbeing of young people, and should be a matter of immediate national concern.

The latest figures released by the government on Friday show a further 4000 hours of PE have been lost from the curriculum in state-funded secondary schools in the last academic year. These cuts come against a backdrop of declining children’s health and wellbeing, increasing time spent online, and continued challenges with school engagement and attendance. The reduction continues a trend that has seen the amount of PE and sport in secondary schools in England fall by more than 12% since the 2012 London Olympics.