THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS ASSOCIATION ON THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 AND SPORTING COMPETITION

THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS ASSOCIATION ON THE IMPACT OF

COVID-19 AND SPORTING COMPETITION

The NSSA are proud to have been running the National Indoor Ski Championships for the ISA for around 6 years now and here is an article from them on the impact of Covid on their events over the last year.

One thing that we particularly hope will be maintained in the coming year is the emphasis on sport and physical activity in the curriculum. It is clear to see the impact that this pandemic has had on our sporting world within the education sector. Backdating to March 2020, ISA reluctantly had to cancel almost all events up until May half term 2021, with the possibility of further changes.

Amongst all the negative impacts on school sport, the pandemic has brought flexibility of thinking, and a level of collaboration which would probably never have emerged in normal circumstances. Discussions and actions towards weekend sporting opportunities that were not confined to those “selected” for school teams but open to all, there was initially some surprise that levels of participation were greater than ever before. Maintaining this depends on each individual school’s situation and will require a wider allocation of resources in comparison to the conventional offer. It means that school sport now stands at a crossroads: it can return as closely as possible to its previous model and try to forget that the 2020/21 year ever happened. Alternatively, it can consider the lessons that have surfaced over the year and reflect on whether some of these involuntary initiatives are worth investing in. As the Independent Schools Association, we provide a range of sporting competitions on both a regional and national scale for 550+ Members’ schools to access throughout the year. This will grow organically in line with the views and needs of our Member schools. In the academic year ahead, we are looking forward to new inclusive opportunities in the Festival of Sport, as well as our ever-popular ISA Indoor Ski event run by Impulse Racing at the Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead.

Now that schools can safely return to competitive sport, we look forward to welcoming everyone back to our high profile events at leading venues.