Schools Stoked At Have A Go Surfing Day!

Schools Stoked At Have A Go Surfing Day!

This week six lucky primary schools were given the opportunity to participate in Sport Wellington’s KiwiSport funded programme ‘Have a Go Surfing Day’, run by Surfing NZ. Over 150 enthusiastic primary school children took part in the taster sessions held at the popular surfing beach, Lyall Bay.

KiwiSport’s aim is to increase the number of school-aged children participating in organised sport and have granted over $7,000 towards the programme. The ‘Have a Go Surfing Day’ aims to use the surfing programme as part of the school sporting curriculum to help increase the participation of children at a grass roots level. Surfing NZ hopes to introduce coaching and development programmes, therefore enabling schools to offer a fun and exciting addition to the mainstream sports performed at school.

KiwiSport Manager, Peter Woodman-Aldridge said ‘we are delighted to be able to assist Surfing NZ with this programme as it’s a fantastic way to get kids involved in alternative sporting opportunities. We are very fortunate in this part of the country to have the water at our doorstep and so it’s great to know that our children are being educated about water safety through the sport of surfing.

Linden School was one of the fortunate schools to participate in the programme. Laura Engel, year 5 and 6 teacher at the school said ‘the school was attracted to the programme as we knew the kids would love it. Every morning we have ‘active time’ at school and this was an extraordinary opportunity to get the kids involved in a sport they would not necessarily get the opportunity to do so. It’s a great way to keep in with the curriculum and our philosophy of keeping active’.

Other local schools who attended the surf days were Lyall Bay School, Houghton Valley School, Worser Bay and Miramar Central School.

Lee Ryan, Development Manager at Surfing NZ said ‘this is the first time we have brought the ‘Have a Go Surfing days’ to Wellington and it’s been a fantastic opportunity to give the kids a taster of what surfing is all about. It’s a great way to hook kids in; not only are we offering the children a fun and enlightening taster day, but we are teaching them vital beach water safety skills also’.

The day has also provided Lee with a chance to establish relationships with the local surfing community, including the Surf Lifesaving Club and Wellington Board Rider’s. ‘The kids who have participated in the programme have had a small taste of what surfing is all about and so inline with the KiwiSport objectives, we have helped provide a pathway for the children to get involved with their local club to continue to learn this fun and exciting sport and potentially develop some future pros’.

For more information on KiwiSport and their funded programmes please go to sportwellington.org.nz/kiwisport

ENDS

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