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Something extraordinary!

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ROKO 20 Academy is a small school that provides hope and happiness for orphans and disadvantaged children in the rural village of Kambirwa, Kenya.  They ensure free education, clothes, food and basic healthcare for all of these children and those caring for them.

The school has grown over the years since it was opened and they are proud of their six classrooms, a library, computer room, a garden where they grow fruit and veg for the school and there are even rabbits, hens, goats and a friendly dog called Paco.

Given the difficult circumstances these children have found themselves in ROKO 20 provides a happy safe space for them to learn and grow.  Very often their grandmothers are raising them with very little help or means and so the skills the school teach the children in particular things such as gardening, needlework, looking after animals and carpentry – are skills of self-sufficiency which will be of much use to them outside of school and later in life.

The good work the school does extends far further into the community bringing Grandparents and carers together for craft mornings, social gatherings and an initiative which see’s families gifted with an animal to rear and reap the benefits of its produce.  By all accounts ROKO 20 is a real centre of a community and having Harvey Road Primary School support them through our sponsorship event brings smiles to all our faces too.  Good luck on the 21st with Steve!

Find out more here: http://roko20academy.weebly.com/

 

Physical fitness is a pre-requisite to achieving academic results!

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Research over the past 10+ years has shown the significant importance of physical activity and developing the brain.

Great Athletes and Playforce have teamed up for the third year running, and this year will be using their partnership to deliver a series of “Get Active” workshops designed to help a whole school understand how small changes can have a big impact on academic results, pupil behaviour and mental health.

Great Athletes run inspirational events to enthuse children to be more active, raise money for sports equipment in schools (over £3m to date), and support athletes financially.

Great Athletes have visited 1 in 4 primary schools across the UK, inspiring over 1.6 million children and giving them direct access to extraordinary GB Olympic & Paralympic athletes.

Playforce is a perfect partner for Great Athletes. Celebrating their 20th year of providing outstanding outdoor spaces in 2018, Playforce install innovative and creative areas for children to get more active.

Emily Northin, Director of Playforce commented; “We are delighted to be continuing our partnership with Great Athletes, cementing our shared goal to get children across the UK more active every day at school. From inspiring pupils with visits from GB athletes to educating teaching staff about the benefits of physical activity on academic results as well as health, we love everything the team at Great Athletes do to promote positive change in school environments.”

Michael Ledzion, Chief Sportivater of Great Athletes, said, “We just love the way Playforce makes playgrounds that encourage kids to get active, so we’re working together to put physical activity at the heart of the primary school curriculum. We think it’s as important to be physically active and healthy as it is to be good at numeracy and literacy: We know that more physically active children achieve better academically in school. Working with Playforce will help us deliver that vital message, and achieve a lasting legacy for all our children.”

For all enquiries please contact:

Francesca Laughton

[email protected]

01223 792202

Great Athletes

The partnership was introduced by the sponsorship and fundraising consultancy Reg&Co.

 

Exercise makes you concentrate!

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Not only does exercise improve the health of our brain, it can also help us to concentrate.

Kids who exercise every day generally find it easier to concentrate in the classroom, something that can help them to boost their academic performance even further.

As well as helping to improve our attention spans, exercise can help to lower anxiety, ease depression and increase our endorphins, helping us to feel happier and healthier.

In fact, a Harvard study on 210 medical students showed that 90% of all the participants said that physical activity increased their concentration!

Get moving with National Fitness Day!

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National Fitness Day is back for 2017 to celebrate the fun of fitness and get the nation moving.

 

We’re helping schools achieve their most active day of the year and getting a record number of people across the UK moving.

 

As part of the day, we’re visiting 10 primary schools with top GB athletes to inspire the children to do more sport and lead healthy lifestyles.

 

The schools are:

 

Park Road Junior Infant & Nursery – West Yorkshire – GB Olympic Diver Rebecca Gallantree

 

Hunslet Carr Primary School – West Yorkshire – GB Olympic Diver Rebecca Gallantree

 

West Hove Junior School – East Sussex – GB Hurdler Serita Solomon

 

Tyntesfield Primary School – Cheshire – Paralympic Blind Footballer Roy Turnham

 

St Bede’s College – Lancashire – GB Paralympic Cyclist Craig McCann

 

Nicholas Chamberlaine Technology College – Warwickshire – Paralympic Archer Danielle Brown

 

Broadway First School – Worcestershire – Paralympic Footballer Jack Rutter

 

Bayards Hill Primary School – Oxfordshire – GB Sprinter Luke Lennon-Ford

 

Church Cowley St James Church of England Primary School – Oxfordshire – GB Triple Jumper Daniel Lewis

 

Mitton Manor Primary School – Gloucestershire – Paralympic Footballer Jack Rutter

 

Show us how you’re getting moving on National Fitness day with the hashtag

 

Steven Ward, CEO of National Fitness Day organiser ukactive said:

“National Fitness Day is a fantastic chance to spotlight physical activity and the role it plays in creating a healthier nation. These free events across the country provide a chance for everyone to experience the fun of fitness and carry forward healthy habits.

“The day also offers a fantastic opportunity to get children moving in their schools to build a whole new active generation.”

Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, Chair of National Fitness Day organiser ukactive said:

“National Fitness Day is a powerful tool to raise the profile of physical activity and the role it plays in increasing the health of our nation. By engaging people across the country we can help provide a pathway into continued involvement in physical activity.”

Exercise improves your memory!

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A number of studies have shown that the parts of the brain responsible for thinking and memory (the prefrontal coortex and medial temporal cortex) are larger in people who exercise compared to those who don’t.

This means that people who exercise on a regular basis are boosting their brainpower, improving their memory and making it easier for their brains to function.

As the parts of the brain responsible for thinking and memory continue to grow throughout our school years, pupils have the opportunity to boost their brain power for good through exercise. What’s more, research has also shown that the more we exercise, the more our brains will respond to these beneficial hormones. It’s cumulative and the benefits compound themselves.

So here’s a “did you know?” fact: Mice that ran 3 miles each night doubled their hippocampus size over time (A part of the brain associated with learning and memory)

 

Exercise makes brain cells grow!

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I’ve been reading some amazing research that is telling us that, as well as being good for our bodies, exercise is fantastic for our minds? Research has shown that exercise can boost our memories and improve our academic performance, making regular exercise incredibly important for school children who want to achieve their full potential.

One of the pieces of research that I find most interesting comes from a study of the physical fitness of year 5, 7, and 9 students, which shows a huge difference in academic performance between physically fit and unfit children.

A summary of those results, below, shows that whereas an unfit child can be expected (on average) to score roughly at the 28th percentile for maths, a child that is physically fit can expect to score at the 66thpercentile. That is a huge difference, and roughly equates to the difference between a D grade at GCSE and an A/B grade.

Of course, we have to remember that these are averages (everyone has experienced a very unfit brain box, and a super-fit person who is just not academic), but the message could not be clearer.

 

Great Athletes scheme to launch in Northern Ireland

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The programme was launched yesterday at Oakwood Intergrated Primary School in Dunmurry  by Irish International and Ulster Rugby star, Tommy Bowe. Thanks to the new partnership 2 year partnership with Subway®, we’re hoping to inspire more children as the scheme expands to Ireland.

 

The scheme gives school children direct access to extraordinary Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Athletes lead a fun fitness circuit, suitable for all levels to participate in, and give a motivational talk, all of which get the children (and their teachers) engaged and excited about taking part in a sport. Some of the athletes involved in the training programme were originally inspired themselves by similar sporting events when they were younger, so the partnership hopes to unlock a genuine drive for many young school children to pursue a love of sports throughout their lifetime.

 

Subway® brand ambassador, Tommy Bowe, commented: “It’s brilliant to be involved in an initiative that encourages kids to get fit and active through sports. Great Athletes has been a great success across the water and I’m delighted to see it’s now being rolled out in Ireland.”

 

Sacha Clark, Marketing Director for the Subway® brand UK and Ireland commented: “We’re proud to announce our partnership with Great Athletes and look forward to inspiring children to play more sport, as we continue to demonstrate our commitment to encouraging more families to get active together.”

 

Michel Ledzion, Chief Sportivater at Great Athletes commented: “With such a rich sporting tradition we think Irish schools could be the first in Europe to make sport and PE as important as English and maths in primary schools. Thanks to our partnership with the Subway® brand, we now can’t wait to work with inspiring Irish athletes to do our bit to help achieve that ambition.”

 

For more information about the Subway® brand please visit www.subway.com.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Teneo PSG: +353 1 6614055/ [email protected]

 

For more information about Great Athletes please visit greatathletes.org or contact

Francesca Laughton: [email protected] / +44 (0)1223 792202.

 

The Subway® brand

The Subway® brand is the world’s largest submarine sandwich franchise, with more than 44,000 locations in more than 112 countries. Headquartered in Milford, Connecticut, the Subway® brand was co-founded by Fred DeLuca and Dr. Peter Buck in 1965. That partnership marked the beginning of a remarkable journey, which has made it possible for thousands of individuals to build and succeed in their own business Subway® is a Registered Trademark of Subway IP Inc. ©2017 Subway IP Inc.

 

The Subway® brand has reduced salt, eliminated artificial trans fats, displayed energy information on menu boards, cut KJ/Kcal across the product range, increased access to fruit and vegetables as part of a balanced diet and reduced saturated fat.

 

Great Athletes

Great Athletes is a social enterprise that brings the country’s top athletes into primary schools to run fun fitness circuits and inspire children (and teachers) to take up sport and lead a healthy life. Great Athletes has a social mission to put physical activity and fitness on a par with numeracy and literacy in primary schools – because it’s healthy and helps pupils achieve better in their exams. The scheme has inspired over 1.5m children and raised over £2.6m for sports equipment for schools to date while supporting athletes with funds to help in their training or transition out of elite sport.

Great Athletes scheme to launch in the Republic of Ireland!

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The programme is being launched today at Our Lady’s National School in Dublin by Irish International and Ulster Rugby star, Tommy Bowe. Thanks to the new partnership 2 year partnership with Subway®, we’re hoping to inspire more children as the scheme expands to Ireland.

 

The scheme gives school children direct access to extraordinary Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Athletes lead a fun fitness circuit, suitable for all levels to participate in, and give a motivational talk, all of which get the children (and their teachers) engaged and excited about taking part in a sport. Some of the athletes involved in the training programme were originally inspired themselves by similar sporting events when they were younger, so the partnership hopes to unlock a genuine drive for many young school children to pursue a love of sports throughout their lifetime.

 

Subway® brand ambassador, Tommy Bowe, commented: “It’s brilliant to be involved in an initiative that encourages kids to get fit and active through sports. Great Athletes has been a great success across the water and I’m delighted to see it’s now being rolled out in Ireland.”

 

Sacha Clark, Marketing Director for the Subway® brand UK and Ireland commented: “We’re proud to announce our partnership with Great Athletes and look forward to inspiring children to play more sport, as we continue to demonstrate our commitment to encouraging more families to get active together.”

 

Michel Ledzion, Chief Sportivater at Great Athletes commented: “With such a rich sporting tradition we think Irish schools could be the first in Europe to make sport and PE as important as English and maths in primary schools. Thanks to our partnership with the Subway® brand, we now can’t wait to work with inspiring Irish athletes to do our bit to help achieve that ambition.”

 

For more information about the Subway® brand please visit www.subway.com.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Teneo PSG: +353 1 6614055/ [email protected]

 

For more information about Great Athletes please visit greatathletes.org or contact

Francesca Laughton: [email protected] / 01 906 9331

 

The Subway® brand

The Subway® brand is the world’s largest submarine sandwich franchise, with more than 44,000 locations in more than 112 countries. Headquartered in Milford, Connecticut, the Subway® brand was co-founded by Fred DeLuca and Dr. Peter Buck in 1965. That partnership marked the beginning of a remarkable journey, which has made it possible for thousands of individuals to build and succeed in their own business Subway® is a Registered Trademark of Subway IP Inc. ©2017 Subway IP Inc.

 

The Subway® brand has reduced salt, eliminated artificial trans fats, displayed energy information on menu boards, cut KJ/Kcal across the product range, increased access to fruit and vegetables as part of a balanced diet and reduced saturated fat.

 

Great Athletes

Great Athletes is a social enterprise that brings the country’s top athletes into primary schools to run fun fitness circuits and inspire children (and teachers) to take up sport and lead a healthy life. Great Athletes has a social mission to put physical activity and fitness on a par with numeracy and literacy in primary schools – because it’s healthy and helps pupils achieve better in their exams. The scheme has inspired over 1.5m children and raised over £2.6m for sports equipment for schools to date while supporting athletes with funds to help in their training or transition out of elite sport.

We’re thrilled to have partnered with Subway®

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Great Athletes is proud to announce a new two year partnership with Subway®, as it continues its commitment to encourage families and children in the UK and Republic of Ireland to get fit and active.

 

The Subway® brand will help to enable primary school children to do more physical activity whilst helping schools raise money for PE equipment.

This new partnership runs alongside the brands Helping Hearts™ Family 5K Series and in-store fundraising with heart health charity Heart Research UK. Both adults and children can take part in a 5k Fun Run with all proceeds raised going towards the Helping Hearts grants scheme.

 

Sacha Clark, Marketing Director for the Subway® brand UK and Ireland commented: “We’re proud to announce our partnership with Great Athletes and look forward to inspiring children to play more sport, as we continue to demonstrate our commitment to encouraging more families to get active together.”

 

Michel Ledzion, Chief Sportivater at Great Athletes commented: “It’s great to welcome the Subway® brand in supporting our mission to put physical activity on a par with numeracy and literacy in primary schools, and we look forward to working with them on a number of exciting new initiatives over the coming years.”

 

For more information about the Subway® brand please visit www.subway.com. For further media enquiries please contact: The Subway® stores Press Office team at Good Relations on [email protected] / +44 (0) 0207 932 3686.

Cambridge Business of the Year – WINNERS!

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Great Athletes is thrilled to have won the award for “Cambridge Business of the Year” at the SME Cambridgeshire Business Awards which took place on Wednesday 5th April.

 

Great Athletes brings top GB athletes into primary schools to inspire children and teachers. The athletes do a fitness circuit with the whole school and give a talk that delivers important messages about sport and physical activity, grit and determination.

 

During the events, children encourage each other to complete the circuits, cheering along to music. No one is left behind – the circuits are completed and enjoyed by each and every child regardless of physical ability. 96% of schools that receive a visit deem their events to be “good” or “excellent”. These proven results have triggered a change in attitude that significantly increases the amount of exercise children do.

 

The children are sponsored for taking part and completing the fitness circuit with the athlete in order to raise money for PE Equipment at their school.To date, Great Athletes have visited over 1.5 million children, raising over £2.5million for new Sports Equipment.

 

In winning the award, Great Athletes have demonstrated that they’re committed to putting physical health on a par with academic achievement and have clear plans for future growth and success.

 

Michael Ledzion, Managing Director of Great Athletes, said: “Everything we do is about encouraging greater physical activity in schools. Research shows that physical fitness is highly correlated to improved academic results, increased confidence, and lower levels of mental illness. We are delighted to have won this SME Cambridgeshire Business Award and are excited for what the future holds.”