Active Schools
Welcome to Sport Aberdeen’s Active Schools programme!
Creating opportunities and encouraging all children and young people to participate in physical activity and sport.
Contact the team...
Active Schools
Active Schools is sportscotland’s national initiative that aims to provide more and higher quality opportunities to take part in sport and physical activity before school, during lunchtime and after school, and to develop effective pathways between schools and sports clubs in the local community.
Active Schools is committed to providing a safe and inclusive space to ensure that the achievements, attitudes and wellbeing of every child and young person matters, regardless of their background, ethnicity, gender, ability or any other personal characteristic.
Delivered in Aberdeen by Sport Aberdeen’s Active Schools team, we work with all primary, secondary and additional support needs (ASN) schools in the city to increase the number of children being active.
The team are responsible for creating opportunities and encouraging all children and young people to participate in physical activity and sport.
Each of our Active Schools Coordinators work for an associated school group (ASG); made up of a secondary school and its feeder primary schools.
Our Universal, Targeted and Specialist provision supports children and young people through a variety of opportunities with the right level of support at the right time.
Universal |
Targeted |
Specialist |
| Universal activities are open to all children and young people within every school in Aberdeen. Our coordinators recruit, develop and deploy volunteers to run each activity. | Supporting identified children and young people to access safe and inclusive opportunities to be active while addressing inequalities in sport. | Offering bespoke 1-2-1 and small group packages, our Specialist programme is designed to allow children and young people with tailored needs participate in sport and physical activity. |
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During the Covid pandemic a variety of resources were developed to support a number of children who were unable to access and participate in regular sport and physical activity. The packs make the delivery of sessions simple and effective and you can continue to access them from the following link.
Universal
Leadership
Our Sports Leadership Programme is designed to provide high quality, regular, support, training and development for young people who are committed to volunteering in sport and physical activity within their school and/or community.
The programme has bronze, silver and gold levels within it and participants can complete as many levels as they wish. There is very little written work and the emphasis is on developing leadership skills through participation while working in small groups to deliver activity. The primary focus of the programme is on developing leadership skills and not sports performance.
Each young leader will be required to complete the pre-determined volunteering hours at each level. Within this time, as part of the programme, they will spend time leading sessions. Hours will be agreed with your Active Schools Coordinator and support will be given during your time volunteering. A maximum of two hours volunteering can be logged each week,. These must be completed at an Active Schools club or one of its partner clubs.
The skills and experience that participants gain upon completion of each level of the Pupil Leadership Programme will be recognised by North East Scotland College as an alternative to the entry requirements for:
- NCFE Level 2 Sport, Exercise and Fitness ( Bronze Award)
- NCFE Level 3 Sport & Exercise Science ( Silver Award)
- HND Coaching & Developing Sport ( Gold Award)
For more information…
Extracurricular
Sport and physical activities which take place before school, during lunchtime and after school.
Delivered by school staff, volunteers, coaches or senior pupils, each school will have a different offer available to the children and young people. To find out more contact the Active Schools Coordinator for your child or young person’s school.
For more information…
Festivals and events
Opportunities for children and young people to represent their school as part of a team or play against individuals from other schools across the city. Our festivals and events give children and young people an opportunity to meet new people and practice their skills learned through extracurricular activities.
For more information…
Targeted
Kit for All
The Kit for All project is a nationwide initiative, which has various representations from areas all over Scotland.
The project’s overarching aim is to reduce and remove any participation barriers for school children in sport and physical activity by providing them with free sports kits.
Find out more about Kit for All
Active Girls
The Active Girls Committee is a city-wide group which has young female representation from all Aberdeen City secondary schools.
The group’s main aim is to reduce the inequality gap between girls and boy’s participation in sport and physical activity throughout Aberdeen city, levelling the playing field for everyone.
Find out more about Active Girls
Supported Memberships
Get active for Less is our discounted access scheme, created to break down the barrier of price and provide more people with the opportunity to take part in sport and physical activity.
Active Schools assistants
Our Active Schools assistants help increase the participation levels of inactive and hard to reach groups of children and young people in sport and physical activity by delivering high quality coaching sessions and ensuring more opportunities are available within curricular and extra curricular settings.
ProActive Minds
The ProActive Minds programme is a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) between Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) and Sport Aberdeen, created to embed the principles of sport and exercise psychology in Aberdeen schools.
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships link forward thinking businesses with the UK’s world class knowledge bases to deliver innovative projects led by inspired graduates. KTPs have been helping businesses innovate for growth since 1975 – there are now around 800 businesses, 100 knowledge bases and over 800 graduates involved in KTPs.
Specialist
SPACE
SPACE (Supported Physical Activity for Care Experienced) is an innovative, award-winning project that supports care experienced children and young people within Aberdeen. Using the positive benefits of sport and physical activity the SPACE project helps children and young people learn, develop and achieve.
Find out more about the SPACE project
Young carers
Young carers make an incredible contribution to their families and local communities. We work with targeted groups, utilising the positive physical and mental impact that participating in sport can bring about to create opportunities, inspire people and change lives. Young carers are one of the targeted groups of young people that our team work with, in partnership with Barnardo’s Aberdeen Young Carers Service.
Volunteering
Active Schools Aberdeen facilitates a range of planned activities in both school and community settings to help encourage children and young people to participate in sport and physical activity. A huge part of our workforce who help us to achieve this are volunteers and we are always looking for new volunteers to support these activities.
Our volunteer opportunities are wide ranging, from delivering extracurricular sports sessions and helping to coordinate events, to supervising activities, supporting a lead coach or helping to take the registers.
We offer training and development opportunities and look to support volunteers as part of our coaching team. Most importantly, you will be part of a team that plays an important role in improving the health and confidence of Aberdeen’s children and young people. If you are as passionate as we are about getting young people in Aberdeen active, then there is a role for you!
We have a range of different volunteers across the city and are always keen to welcome new volunteers into our team.
Most volunteers offer to help lead activities or support the main session deliverer, however, volunteers can also help to staff events and festivals; support us with our admin; referee and officiate at our festivals and matches.
Parents/Guardians
Parents and guardians are a valuable part of our volunteer team. Often parents volunteer to support activities that their children are involved with and sometimes end up staying on with sessions because they enjoy it so much. Some even keep volunteering long after their children have left school!
Parents and guardians can volunteer by delivering sport and physical activity sessions; supporting a sports coach by being a second adult in the session; taking registers; helping with the admin.
Teachers/School Staff
Teachers and school staff are well placed to deliver and support extracurricular activities either before, during or after school. Teachers may find that they have a slot one lunch break or after school where they would be able to deliver or support an activity.
We offer regular CPD and workshops for staff looking for support with ideas and resources.
Young Leaders/School Pupils
We can support academy age pupils to be volunteers in our activities in a number of different ways:
- Some pupils simply enjoy working with children or have a passion for a particular sport.
- Some pupils are looking for fun ways to help complete their volunteering section for Duke of Edinburgh or Saltire Awards.
- Some pupils are looking for opportunities to gain experience as sports coaches and sign up to one of our Sports Leadership programmes to help them become better and more confident leaders
- Some pupils will help promote sport and physical activity in their school by joining Young Ambassadors or Active Girls Committee.
Pupils will work alongside an older deliverer at the sessions. There are opportunities for pupils to return to their old primary school to support activities there, or at their current secondary school for pupils in younger year groups. More experienced pupils have sometimes progressed from volunteers to paid coaches and holiday camp leaders.
Students
We acknowledge that a number of highly enthusiastic and experienced student sportspeople come to Aberdeen to study at one of the universities or college. Students often have gaps in their timetables that allow them to deliver lunchtime or before school sessions where other volunteers may not be available.
Active Schools have formed links with a number of university clubs in the past from shinty to cheerleading, which has seen a number of student coaches come into schools to deliver activities and sports that they are passionate about.
Students have a great opportunity to capture the attention and enthusiasm of youngsters! Some students have enjoyed volunteering so much that they have taken on paid roles in our coaching programmes and holiday camps.
Club Sport and Community
You may be part of a local community sports club and want to help more children and young people access your sport. Active Schools have formed links with a number of ClubSport Aberdeen Level 2 clubs across the city – volunteers from these clubs then support school activities and help to create an excellent pathway into the community club environment.
You may be a volunteer in the community who just wants to help out and support local activities for children and young people. We try and find a place for all volunteers who are willing to give up their time!
Volunteer Requirements
At the start of your volunteer journey with us, there will be some paperwork to fill out and some online training modules to complete. These are mandatory before anyone can start volunteering with Active Schools, as they form part of our Sport Aberdeen insurance requirements. A summary of these can be seen below.
- PVG Disclosure Check
- Induction and Personal Information Form
- Child Protection Training
- Ready to Start Volunteering
Not all of these steps may be required for some volunteer types. This would be explained in discussion with your Active Schools Coordinator.
This short video provides a look at the different people who can volunteer with Active Schools.
To find out how you could benefit from volunteering for the Active Schools programme please contact, activeschools@sportaberdeen.co.uk or find your local coordinator in the section above.
If you have already begun your journey as an Active Schools Volunteer, please find a range of resources below.
Active Schools volunteering resources
Workshops
Continuous professional development.
The 2024 Calendar will be available soon. If you have any queries meantime, please contact our Lead Schools Coordinator for Projects, Sarah Fraser.
The previous training and development page can be accessed HERE.
Meet the team
To contact the Active Schools team, please call 01224 270990 or contact your dedicated Active Schools Coordinator directly from the following options:
Kim McRobbie
Scott Mitchell – Active Schools Coordinator
07825 754634
SMitchell@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Orchard Brae School
John Dixon – Lead Active Schools Coordinator
07825227981
JoDixon@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Mile End ASN Wing
Aisla Gordon – Active Schools Coordinator
07825 227941
ASAberdeengrammar@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Bucksburn Academy ASN Wing
Victor Omondi – Active Schools Coordinator
07825 228158
vomondi@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Aberdeen School for Deaf
James Sadio – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Aberdeen Grammar School
- Ashley Road Primary School
- Gilcomston Primary School
- Mile End Primary School
- Mile End ASN Wing
- Skene Square Primary School
- St Joseph’s Primary School
Aisla Gordon – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Bridge of Don Academy
- Scotstown Primary School
- Braehead Primary School
Scott Mitchell – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Bucksburn Academy
- Bucksburn Academy ASN Wing
- Brimmond Primary School
- Kingswells Primary School
- Stoneywood Primary School
Victor Omondi – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Cults Academy
- Cults Primary School
- Culter Primary School
- Milltimber Primary School
John Dixon – Lead Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Dyce Academy
- Dyce School
Victor Omondi – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Harlaw Academy
- Broomhill Primary School
- Ferryhill Primary School
- Kaimhill Primary School
- Hanover Street Primary School
Alice Walker Stewart – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Airyhall Primary School
- Countesswells Primary School
- Fernielea Primary School
- Hazlehead Primary School
- Kingsford Primary School
Emma Bryant – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Lochside Academy
- Abbotswell Primary School
- Charleston Primary School
- Kirkhill Primary School
- Loirston Primary School
- Tullos Primary School
- Walker Road Primary School
Eilidh McLeod – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Northfield Academy
- Bramble Brae Primary School
- Heathryburn Primary School
- Holy Family RC Primary School
- Murifield Primary School
- Quarryhill Primary School
- Manor Park Primary School
- Westpark Primary School
Stacey Stuart – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- Oldmachar Academy
- Danestone Primary School
- Forehill Primary School
- Glashieburn Primary School
- Greenbrae Primary School
- Middleton Park Primary School
Cameron Robinson – Active Schools Coordinator
Covering,
- St Machar Academy
- Cornhill Primary School
- Kittybrewster Primary School
- Riverbank Primary School
- Seaton Primary School
- St Peter’s Primary School
- Sunnybank Primary School
- Woodside Primary School
- Aberdeen School for Deaf
James Sadio – Active Schools Coordinator
SPACE programme
Katrina Carr – Lead Active Schools Coordinator
07825 859068
space@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Pamela Adam – Project Activator (SPACE)
Rebekah Singer – Project Activator (SPACE)
Wendy Carrick – Active Schools Coordinator
07747 017622
Jamie Mundie – Lead Active Schools Coordinator
07741 516752
jmundie@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Katrina Carr – Lead Active Schools Coordinator
07825 859068
Kcarr@sportaberdeen.co.uk
Scott Mitchell – Active Schools Coordinator (ASN & Disability)
07825 754634
Ciara Reidy – KTP Associate
creidy@sportaberdeen.co.uk
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