St. Finian's Catholic Primary School

Our Physical Education (PE) curriculum is designed to inspire all children to lead healthy, active lives while instilling a lifelong love for exercise and sport. We aim to develop pupils’ physical skills, confidence and enjoyment in a variety of different sports and activities. Through PE, we seek to teach not only the importance of fitness but also the values of teamwork, leadership, and perseverance.

Our goal is for every child to leave primary school with a positive mindset towards staying active, understanding the connection between physical health, mental well-being, and personal achievement.

PE is taught through a balanced and varied curriculum following six key areas:

Athletics, Dance, Games, Gymnastcis, Swimming, Outdoor Adventure

Each year, through a spiral curriculum, children learn important knowledge and skills in PE, including coordination, balance, strength, agility, strategy, progressing in complexity as they move through from year to year.

Lessons are inclusive and engaging, with clear objectives that cater to different ability levels. In addition to regular PE lessons, at St. Finian’s we encourage participation in lunch time and after-school sports clubs providing further opportunities to build skills. We offer inter-school competitions and fixtures throughout the year fostering a culture of active participation and healthy competition. (see sports premium report).

Children in Upper KS2 (Y5 & Y6), participate in outdoor activity weeks spent at an outdoor residential centre out of the county. These provide an opportunity to engage in adventure activities, testing children’s resilience and stamina such as canoeing, rock climbing and coasteering.

At St. Finian’s, pupil leadership is an important part of our sports curriculum. In KS2, we offer children the opportunity to lead physical group training sessions and coach their younger peers; this facilitates the growth of key skills and valuable personal qualities-, responsibility, resilience, communication and mentorship.

In July 24, for the SEVENTH year running, St. Finian's was awarded the prestigious Gold Sportsmark Award! This award recognises those schools who show exceptional achievement, excellent participation, highly innovative schemes and outstanding progress in achieving their sporting aims. It is a reflection of our commitment to the vision we have for sport at our school and our active participation in the West Berkshire Schools Network.

Each year, through our active membership of West Berkshire sports, we engage our children in friendly competitions and league matches across the district and beyond. 

The impact of our PE curriculum is visible in the physical, social, and emotional development of our pupils. Children gain increased fitness levels, coordination, and understanding of sportsmanship, learning how to set goals and work collaboratively with others.

The PE curriculum also contributes to mental resilience, teaching children how to face challenges, win with humility, and handle setbacks constructively. By the time our children leave St. Finian’s, they will have experienced a broad range of physical activities and have the skills and confidence to stay active, healthy, and engaged in future sports and physical pursuits.

Our sports ambassador opportunities, facilitate the growth of important leadership skills; these are transferable across many other areas of the curriculum as well as in wider school and home life.