reducing the number of children who lead sedentary lives thus putting themselves at risk of becoming obese.
Providing sufficient exercise for young people, both in and out of school, needs to be addressed as a priority if we are to give them the best opportunities in life, both academic and sporting. I believe that many of our youngsters are not receiving at school the recommended 60 minutes of activity per day with some only achieving one hour per week as 20/20 sports directory points out. This is clearly unacceptable and if we can legislate for people to wear seat belts then we can and should legislate for at least one hour of sporting activities in our schools daily.
Not only will increased activity in children improve cardio respiratory fitness, build stronger bones and muscles, control weight and reduce the risk of anxiety and depression, it will make for better learning and academic achievement. If we can increase levels of activity within the school day, children will likely improve their concentration, memory and classroom behaviour. Having policies that implement both free and organised play in school should encourage teachers themselves to be more active and could tempt other family members into increased sports participation.
We should be very proud of the work carried out by the Sports Development Team (now Jersey Sport) in
implementing Jersey's first Physical Literacy programme for school children, but we have to commit further resource in this area if we are to give every child an equal opportunity to reach their potential. Any future sports strategy must have at its heart structured and organised provision for sport for children and young people if we want to see healthy, happy, active children becoming healthy, happy, active
nt
adults. Also it is only if we provide the right building blocks for physical development at an early age that we can expect to produce talented athletes who could become our sporting stars of the future, and who knows maybe this Island could nurture world class athletes and sports people in the future - something that arguablyly Jersey has done irregularly. This would highlight Jersey on the world’s stage for something other than the finance industry!
e e d
If within Jersey we want every islander to be more active then we must be committed to increased physical
r
activity. To achieve this we need to provide accessible and affordable sports facilities. That is likely to mean future investment in not only States sports facilities but also private, including workplace facilities whilst also making the outdoor environment more accessible and inviting as a place to stay fit and active. At present we are undertaking a review of all States sports facilities to inform the Sports Division on the capacity we have within our facilities and what future capital investment might be required when considering overall long term funding needs. By progressing a long term sports facilities strategy we can
ovide
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fit g a
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consider whether we actually make best use of our current sports portfolio. After visiting the majority of sports sites around Jersey, I have questioned whether we make optimum use of both those facilities and the funding used to run and maintain them. This will need reviewing and in future clubs may have to increasingly share facilities or in some cases consider amalgamating if there are only a small number of members in a particular club. We have been fortunate for many decades to have a vast range of sporting facilities that far exceed what would normally be expected or affordable in a town of 100,000 people on the mainland. In the main facilities have historically been funded by government but rightly all funding is now more closely scrutinised so where possible we have to provide better value for money and improve efficiency. Importantly though fit for purpose facilities must support the next sports strategy for Jersey that will include an active and healthy living programme for all islanders.
We live in a truly wonderful environment in Jersey and it must in future play an increasing role in keeping our population fit and active. Being outdoors in itself is important and we need to see the outdoor activities sector thrive so that islanders have options to engage in more physical activity be it swimming, cycling, walking or simply enjoying a stroll on a beach. Growing this ‘outdoor’ sector is something that is close to my heart and I support it as someone who enjoys sea swimming. I am keen to explore ways in which Jersey can be known for more than being a finance centre (however important our main economic driver is) and potentially we can create one of the biggest watersports parks in Europe as a way of Jersey attracting
ports parks in Eur pe as a way of Jersey attracting
ng Drone picture by Danny Richardson Photography
A sporting Island
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