Sevenhills Academy is situated on the Nunsthorpe estate in Grimsby in an area of high deprivation. The school enacts trauma-informed principles such as ensuring safety and wellbeing and developing and sustaining positive relationships that foster a sense of belonging. The school is located in the heart of the community and thus links with young people and their families have been created, maintained and strengthened. A need for a provision for young people to have the opportunity to engage in physical activity on the estate was apparent through the collection of pupil and parent voice. Due to the high prevalence of families on the Nunsthorpe estate having low economic status it was important that these sessions would be free and not incur any costs to the family or young people accessing them.
The Opening Schools Facilities (OSF) fund allowed Sevenhills Academy to ensure that a club could be created at no cost for participants. The collaboration of a qualified sports coach and school staff, often those who reside on the estate, ensured that there is a safe face to support participation whilst ensuring the sessions were engaging for all. The OSF fund further supported the purchase of new and exciting equipment to engage those who have previously been hard to reach and disengaged from physical activity such as UV dodgeball equipment.
The multiskills after school club at Sevenhills Academy commenced on the 4th January with the purpose of encouraging healthy participation in physical activity in a safe, nurturing environment. The first session didn’t receive any participants, however engagement with the club began to grow with 26 different participants accessing the sessions in the period from January to March. Participants accessed a range of individual and team activities such as UV dodgeball, football and basketball.
The club has continued to evolve since formation and has supported young people who reside in the area by presenting a new, cost free, accessible opportunity in a nurturing environment. One participant stated ‘’this club gives me a chance to do something I like on an evening‘’. In addition to the personal development and enrichment of young people, staff have equally benefited from the programme through a series of activator courses delivered by street games in boxing, football and multiskills. Staff have been equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to support the club and ensure the project remains sustainable. As a direct result of the OSF funding a coach who supported the delivery of the club has since been employed permanently by the trust further amplifying the success and legacy of the programme.
