Take a look at how Dumfries & Galloway Active Schools Network are using Active to improve competitive sport in their area.

Geographical location: South-West Scotland
Area: Covers around 600,000 hectares
Population: Approximately 148,0302
Main towns: Dumfries (31,100 residents), Stranraer (10,900 residents), Annan (8,400) and Locharbriggs (6,100)
Population density: 60 people per square mile compared with the national Scottish average of 1684
Number of pupils: Primary- 12,138 / Secondary- 96565
Number of schools: Primary- 105 / Secondary- 176

The main issue for online prescription competitive school sports in Dumfries & Galloway

One of the fundamental issues that face school sports in Dumfries and Galloway is the sheer distance between schools and the costs that mount up in order to cover the travel expenses.  Dumfries and Galloway is the third largest local authority area in terms of geographical size in Scotland and yet the population density figures above reflect how remote an area it truly is.  The furthest distance between schools measures an impressive 124 miles, between Langholm Primary School to Portpatrick Primary School, which takes 3 hours and 22 minutes travel time according to the RAC.

The solution – Active

The objective for Dumfries & Galloway Active Schools Network is to provide their Leisure and Sport Service with the opportunity to optimise physical activity and sporting prospects without running into transport issues.  Dumfries & Galloway have opted to set up virtual competition throughout the schools in the area using Active. This eradicates any need for travel as schools no longer need to rely on long journeys to participate in intra and inter school competition.

The Benefits

Dumfries & Galloway have found that measuring scores against other teams has been a huge driver to pupils’ enthusiasm and has sustained interest in an activity.  The core of Active software is to use comparative scoring as a basis for competitive sports.  The scoring can be put into context as it is calculated using an average so that no school is disadvantaged due to its size.  It allows the Council to customize and reflect its target/priority sports and enables a vast range of traditional and non-traditional sports to be offered to young people.  Active also provides Sport Development Officers the chance to identify talented individuals at a glance and for Active Schools Coordinators to offer more support to those scoring below average.  In addition, Dumfries and Galloway are given the capacity to monitor user figures, participant feedback, popularity and pupil experience of an activity without having to distribute costly and time consuming questionnaires.

Testimonial from Dumfries & Galloway Active Schools Network

A representative of Dumfries & Galloway has written a testimonial to explain how Active will improve the quality of school sports throughout the area:

‘One of the biggest barriers to inter school sport is the cost of travel. Running virtual competition using Active removes travel costs while still offering both competitive and non-competitive opportunities for pupils to participate against other young people either individually or as part of a team. Virtual competition aims to enhance and offer new inter school competition and not replace young people physically coming together to participate in sport/physical activity.

Schools can take part in a range of activities through virtual competition, and many could be new initiatives. There is no cost to schools to set up competitions, resulting in less pressure if they prove less popular or desirable. Students will eventually be given their own passwords so they can access competitions at home and try and improve their personal performance.”

Summary

Using Active has meant that schools throughout Dumfries and Galloway have been able to take part in competitions without having to negotiate the vast distances.  It means that young people in the area have been able to take part in more competition, talented individuals have not been overlooked and those that need extra help have received it.