Primary schools in Ashfield are being urged to enter a new competition to showcase how they promote healthy lifestyles to pupils, with thousands of pounds worth of prizes up for grabs.

Ashfield’s Healthiest School Competition, which is being run in partnership with leisure operator Everyone Active, Ashfield District Council and Ashfield School Sports, is inviting all schools in the area to take part in the free-to-enter contest, which is now open and will run during the academic year 2019-2020.

The aim is to encourage and enable children to grow as active, healthy and engaged citizens through establishing and promoting a healthy lifestyle that underpins the wider curriculum.

Rebecca Phillips, Active Communities manager at Everyone Active, said: “Ashfield’s Healthiest School Competition is a fantastic way to reward the hard work that schools in the area do to keep children healthy. We have some excellent prizes on offer to encourage youngsters to stay active, and above all, have fun!

“What we’re passionate about is getting all generations engaged in activity, helping them to lead a healthy lifestyle. So we’re very excited to see this free competition open in April, and would encourage all schools to enter.”

To participate, schools will need to show how they keep children active and healthy at school and meet the competition criteria with photos, action plans, certificates, reports or an explanation.

The criteria includes questions around how a school promotes 30 minutes of activity per day, mindfulness, hydration, healthy eating and tuck shop options, active travel and supports Change 4 Life campaigns.

The school that meets the most criteria and accumulates the most points will be crowned the winner.

The school that wins first place will receive its choice of £1,000-worth of sports equipment from Maude Sport, in addition to a fun-packed party at an Everyone Active leisure centre.

Second prize is a 12-week Change 4 Life programme, worth £300, delivered at the school for a class of children, plus an Everyone Active party.

The third-placed school will have the chance to run a party of its choice for up to 70 children, including ice skating, roller skating, swimming or a bouncy castle at a participating Everyone Active leisure centre.

An additional award of the Ashfield School Sports Trophy will be awarded to the school with the biggest improvement in healthy, active lifestyles. This award is open to Ashfield district school sport members only.

Everyone Health, a sister company of Everyone Active, which empowers people to adopt healthier behaviours, will be supporting the schools involved in the competition and helping them to create healthy lifestyles for youngsters.

Support and advice can be sought from the Active Communities team at Everyone Active to enable a school to develop a healthy lifestyle action plan that may form part of its strategic development plan. This can then be used as evidence for OFSTED.

All participating schools will receive a window sticker to display and show that they are working towards being Ashfield’s healthiest school.

The competition ends in July 2020. Those schools interested in the competition should email [email protected] for more information and to enter.

Pictured, from left, are head teacher Rachel Jones; Rebecca Phillips, Active Communities manager at Everyone Active; and Theresa Hodgkinson, assistant director – Place and Wellbeing at Ashfield District Council.