Witney News - Project prepares young people for school change

Project prepares young people for school change

Rugby sessions are helping to boost confidence and prepare children in Witney who have just left primary school and are starting the new school year at secondary school.

Eight pupils from three different primary schools have been attending weekly rugby training in the run-up to starting at Wood Green School. The sessions are continuing as they settle into Year 7 during the first few weeks of the new term.

The sessions have been organised by West Oxfordshire District Council as part of the RUSH project, which it runs in conjunction with a network of agencies that work with young people. The project aims to create opportunities for young people to engage in positive activities to help build confidence and self esteem.

Cllr Hilary Biles, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Tourism and Health, and the District Council’s Young Person’s Champion, said: “The transition from primary to secondary school can be very daunting. The aim of the rugby sessions has been to give encouragement and support to some of those young people who may have found it more of a struggle, to boost their confidence, meet new people, and help them feel ready and prepared to start their secondary schooling.”

The non-contact tag rugby training has been led by members of Witney Rugby Football Club and all of the young people were chosen to attend by their former primary school teachers.

RUSH was launched in 2008 and has previously run football sessions for young people in Witney in partnership with the town’s Base 33 youth charity. The project has also arranged for children in foster care and their carers to receive discounted access to the District Council’s leisure centres.

There are plans to introduce RUSH to Chipping Norton later this year. The project group is looking at ways of reaching out to young people in the town.

(The photo above show the young people during a non-contact tag rugby session).