From grassroots to gold medals

A culture of sport for all

From the netball courts to the sports hall, the hockey pitch to the fitness suite, sport at Loughborough High School is underpinned by inclusivity. In all year groups, girls are given the autonomy to shape their own path, try new things and discover where their passions lie. It is this freedom to explore that creates an open-door culture at the School when it comes to sport – a culture where girls learn from each other, support each other and celebrate each other’s successes. 

If I had to summarise sport at Loughborough High School in just one word, I think I’d have to pick ‘vibrant.’ It fills me with pride to see how much energy and enthusiasm our girls bring to their sport, regardless of ability level. For them, it’s truly about having fun playing the sport they love and to see this day in, day out is special. 

From Year 7 upwards, we deliver a concept-based curriculum – a skills-focused programme in which sport is underpinned with learning key life skills. From problem-solving to communication, confidence and resilience, teaching sport through the skills lens immediately positions it as a powerful tool for developing the whole person. By instilling this message from the start, we maintain our participation rates as our pupils progress through the school. 

In the Youth Sport Trust’s 2025 national report Girls Active, only 57% of girls said they enjoy taking part in PE. Our PE curriculum in Years 7, 8 and 9 covers as many different activities as possible, enabling girls to find the sports that spark a passion for them. We want girls to look forward to their PE lessons knowing that they are excited about what they’re doing.  

In contrast to the national statistic, this academic year, we’ve recorded a 73% participation rate across six different sports from our Year 7 pupils. This reflects a 25% increase from the previous year and reinforces the idea that active engagement with PE stems from pupils having the freedom to guide their own learning. The concept-based approach thus ensures girls are all learning the same values but gives them the autonomy to understand it through the activities they are most passionate about. 

We nurture these passions by making it really clear to the girls that if they want to play for the School, there will be the opportunity; there’ll be enough fixtures for every pupil to experience what it’s like to represent LHS.

Not only do fixtures give pupils an insight into what it’s like to play in a more controlled and competitive environment, they’re often bonding moments for our girls, providing time for them to grow and develop as a team. It is this experience of camaraderie and togetherness that I believe encourages so many of our girls to progress in their sport.

When it comes to our senior pupils, we have a variety of opportunities for them to take on leadership roles and achieve places on our player pathway programmes. The Student Athlete Programme, for example, supports our high-performing girls who already compete at regional or national level. It provides tailored, expert support across sports coaching, fitness, strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports psychology, and lifestyle mentoring, designed to enhance both athletic and academic success.  The programme equips our student athletes with the skills, mindset and structure needed to succeed in competitive performance environments. 

We also ensure that our senior pupils are actively encouraged to promote a culture of ‘giving back,’ and many also take on roles as student coaches for girls in younger year groups. They’ve been through the curriculum, so all the skills that they’ve learnt become clear – the way that they articulate, communicate and just breathe confidence into the other girls is amazing. I constantly see girls out on the hockey pitch, on the netball courts or at House events like Sports Day helping their peers build upon their technique and grow their confidence, acting as positive role models for girls who are just at the beginning of their sporting journey. 

Many of our pupils look up to students in the older years as examples of where dedication to their sport could take them. This year alone we’ve seen senior students win national championship medals, compete in international tournaments and represent England. This conveys an inspiring message to our whole school community when it comes to sport – nothing is off limits. Regardless of ability level, this message sits at the centre of all PE lessons, co-curricular activities and sporting opportunities at LHS; creating a culture of sport for all that celebrates sports’ most important values – respect, resilience and responsibility.