In this blog, we explain what PE & Sport Premium funding is, what’s new this year, and share proven PE premium spending ideas to help you create sustainable impact across your school.
PE and school sport are a vital part of a broad and balanced curriculum. PE & Sport Premium funding gives schools a valuable opportunity to improve physical activity levels, raise attainment, and support pupils’ physical and mental wellbeing.
Importantly, schools must use this funding to create sustainable improvements that benefit both current pupils and future cohorts.
What is the PE & Sport Premium?
The Primary PE & Sport Premium is government funding provided to primary schools in England to improve the quality of PE, sport and physical activity.
Originally introduced as part of the legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the funding is ring-fenced, meaning it must be used specifically to enhance PE and sport provision.
PE & Sport Premium 2025-2026 – What’s New?
The funding will continue for the 2025–2026 academic year, with a stronger emphasis on accountability, sustainability, and impact reporting.
New digital reporting requirement
Schools must now complete a digital reporting return outlining how funding has been spent and its impact.
• Reporting window opens: June 2026
• Deadline: 31 July 2026
Tracking your spending and impact throughout the year will make this process much easier and ensure compliance.
The 5 Key Areas of Spend
To maximise impact, schools should align their spending with the Department for Education’s 5 key indicators:
- Increase staff confidence, knowledge and skills
- Increase engagement of all pupils in regular physical activity
- Raise the profile of PE and sport across the school
- Offer a broader and more equal range of sports and activities
- Increase participation in competitive sport
The tips in this blog are designed to help you deliver improvements across all five areas.
What can the PE & Sport premium be used for?
Here are some effective ways to spend your funding:
Enhance your PE Curriculum and Equipment
Carry out a full audit of your PE provision, including lessons, breaktimes and extracurricular activities. Ask yourself if you have enough high-quality equipment for all pupils. Consider whether your provision supports fundamental movement skills such as running, jumping, throwing and catching.
Invest in Staff Training (CPD)
Upskilling teachers is one of the most effective ways to create long-term, sustainable impact. You should look at providing targeted CPD based on staff needs and build confidence so staff can deliver high quality PE independently. You can also use PE specialists to mentor teachers.
Improve Swimming and Water Safety Outcomes
Provide top-up swimming sessions for those who have not met the national curriculum requirements. Ensure you track progress carefully to support end-of-key-stage reporting.
Embed physical activity into the school day
Encourage active travel to and from school and having active break times. Finding the time for two hours of high-quality PE in the weekly timetable is crucial and making the most of this time and additional opportunities is vital for pupils to maintain good physical and mental health.
Provide targeted activities and support to encourage least active children
Try some active curriculum lessons to get them engaged like a maths scoring throwing activity, running around on spelling trails, orienteering in geography and using relay type games in science. Look at alternative games that can be enjoyed at lunchtime and in after school clubs.
Help to provide equal access for all pupils to a range of sports and physical activities.
Review PE and sporting equipment to assess whether all children can use it successfully. Find ways to monitor attendance of extra-curricular sport and physical activity clubs. Get feedback from those who do not attend and find ways to get these pupils involved.
Our Top 5 tips to Maximise your PE Premium
1. Raise the profile of PE and Sport across the school
- Create a positive atmosphere and culture towards being active and celebrate PE through newsletters, assemblies and various displays around school. Use assembly time to inspire and teach rules of new sports and help children to feel more confident and knowledgeable.
- Embed physical activities into the school day with daily keep fit sessions such as whole school ‘Wake up & shake up’.
- Consider pupils coming into school wearing PE kits on PE days to maximise PE lessons.
- Offer physical activities during breaktimes, lunchtimes and before and after school.
- Protect indoor and outdoor PE spaces by ringfencing them for sport and physical activity purposes only and ensure lessons happen in all weather conditions.
- Connect with the community and share sports facilities. Work closely with external organisations such as the local football club or dance group.
2. Increase confidence, knowledge and skills of all staff in teaching PE and Sport
- PE specialists can work alongside teachers to help upskill them.
- Provide CPD and training to build staff confidence.
- Invest in curriculum resources and equipment to help deliver good PE sessions and ensure consistency and progression throughout the school.
- Develop a PE subject leadership team to support staff and create an assessment toolkit to monitor PE.
- Offer after school sports for staff to enjoy.
3. Engage all pupils in regular physical activity
- Run sessions before and after school, at breaktimes and lunchtimes to accommodate all pupils. Have active break and lunchtimes and offer a range of equipment. Introduce new activities and set up active challenges.
- Have sports leaders and let peers lead activities and act as role models.
- Offer a wide range of different clubs and consider opening premises outside regular school hours to encourage family participation. Involve parents in active learning and healthy eating. Get them to send pictures into school of the family being active and encourage active travel to and from school.
- Adapt sports and activities to make them more accessible to a range of pupils. Provide staff with the expertise and confidence to adapt a wide range of sporting and physical activities to engage a diverse range of pupil’s interests and abilities.
- Make sure children see staff being active and taking part. Use external visitors to motivate children and act as role models.
- Monitor stereotypes in sports and challenge appropriately, providing a broad PE and school sports for all pupils.
4. Increase participation in competitive sport
- Attend festivals and competitions and give all pupils a chance to represent the school in some sporting activity.
- Get involved with events such as National Sports Week in June and set up in-house competitions.
- Create relationships and share expertise across multiple schools and have school competitions.
- Spend time planning your annual School Sports day. See our blog ‘7 top tips for sports day’ for inspiration
- Offer regular after school sports clubs and arrange games against other school clubs.
- Have ‘personal best’ challenges for children to enjoy at break and lunchtime.
5. Broaden experience of a range of sports and activities offered to all pupils
- Offer a range of sports clubs to improve pupils’ feeling of belonging in the school and community. Make these ‘Let’s Play… clubs’ so pupils who prefer to learn the skills of games rather than playing the games can be involved. Offer activities such as golf, multi-skills as well as more traditional ones such as football and dance.
- Use external coaches to offer a wider variety of sports.
- Introduce new sports through an extensive after school and lunchtime club programme. Make exciting announcements of the new sports in assemblies to raise the profile of the activities.
- Appoint sports leaders and involve mid-day supervisors to support the delivery of these active lunchtimes.
- Have a carousel of activities and offer multi-skill tasks at school events such as Sports Day.
In Summary – Plan your PE & Sport Premium Funding
Every school is different, so it’s important to develop a tailored plan that meets the needs of your pupils. By focusing on sustainability, inclusion and impact, you can make the most of your PE & Sport Premium funding and create lasting benefits for your whole school community.
You should:
- Plan spending across the 5 key areas
- Focus on sustainable, long-term improvements
- Track impact from the start of the year
- Prepare for digital reporting (June–July 2026)
- Publish clear information on your website
Explore our full range of PE and Sports equipment, designed to help you deliver engaging, inclusive and high-quality physical activity across your school.
This blog was updated and revised in March 2026.
