Thousands of school children from across Aberdeen would have been gearing up for the city’s largest free sporting extravaganza this week, marking the 7^th annual Aberdeen Youth Games (AYG).

The event is a citywide initiative developed in partnership with registered charity Sport Aberdeen’s Active Schools team, Robert Gordon University (RGU) and the North East Scotland College (NESCol) with ongoing support from The Wood Foundation.  

Over 200 student coaches were set to deliver activities in primary schools, culminating in the Festival of Health at the Aberdeen Sports Village which would have taken place today (22 May).

The 2020 primary programme kicked off at a launch event held at RGU in March, after last year saw a record-breaking number of pupils take part. However, this year’s finale has sadly been cancelled due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

This event followed on from a hugely successful secondary youth games programme that deployed RGU students into secondary schools and hosted a festival where over 400 pupils took part in five different sports earlier in the year.

Olympic gold medallist Dr Katherine Grainger CBE and Chairman of The Wood Foundation, Sir Ian Wood CBE, have been amongst the AYG ambassadors since its launch in 2014.

Graeme Dale, Sport Aberdeen Head of Sport and Active Communities, said:

“The initiative has become a hugely anticipated and enjoyable event in Aberdeen’s school sporting calendar, and it underlines the importance of keeping young people active in a fun environment whilst giving students invaluable experience.

“We are proud to continue working with RGU and NESCol to deliver the games and the effort which the Active Schools team put in to help foster a culture of physical activity amongst young people in the city is admirable. Thanks to the continuing support of The Wood Foundation, the Aberdeen Youth Games will return next year and the partnership will now use this time to start planning on how 2021 can be the best yet.

“In the meantime, I would encourage everyone to keep an eye on the Sport Aberdeen website and social channels where you can find a multitude of free resources aimed at keeping young people healthy, active and motivated during this challenging time.”

Sir Ian Wood, Chairman of The Wood Foundation, said:

“The Aberdeen Youth Games ‘Festival of Sport’ is always a wonderful day and a great opportunity to see so many young people come together to enjoy sport.

“What’s more important is that healthy lifestyles and exercise are essential for physical and mental wellbeing. Schools have a vital role to play in this area and can be well supported in this through partnerships like this.

“Unfortunately, this event is yet another casualty of Covid-19 and it is sad we’re missing this year’s programme. However, we are pleased to be in a position to realign our funding to delivery in 2021 and will once again enjoy what is an outstanding day in our philanthropic calendar.”

Thomas Craig, Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science RGU, said:

“Robert Gordon University has a long standing and valued relationship with Sport Aberdeen, NESCol and The Wood Foundation which culminates every year in the Aberdeen Youth Games. We are understandably disappointed that this year it was not possible to complete the Aberdeen Youth Games.

“We would again like to thank our partners for the experience they provided our students on the preparatory build up, which was once again exceptional.

“We look forward to next year where our students can reciprocate this through the placement opportunities that lead to a successful Aberdeen Youth Games, whilst creating a lasting positive impact on the children and young people of Aberdeen.”

Neil Tattersal, Curriculum Manager for Sport at North East Scotland College, said:

“The Aberdeen Youth Games have become a massive part of the community sporting calendar for the city and something all of our students look forward to supporting every year.

“More than 200 NESCol students from a range of sports courses normally attend this event and share their passion and enthusiasm for sport with the participants. Events like this illustrate the positive impact sport has on the local community. By working together with Active Schools and RGU to deliver the Youth Games we can encourage more children to get more active more often.”

Although the citywide event has been put on hold this year, registered charity Sport Aberdeen has been working hard to produce an online programme of free resources, aimed at encouraging children to remain active while schools and extracurricular activities remain on hold.

Get active @ Home Junior is an online hub of free resources, ideas and challenges specifically designed for children and families; helping to keep everyone active whilst schools and extracurricular activities are on hold due to the ongoing pandemic.

Registered charity Sport Aberdeen has donated items to north-east charity and social enterprise Community Food Initiatives North East (CFINE) in the hope of reaching those most in need in the area.

Sport Aberdeen has donated perishable food and drink items that were held within its citywide venues to CFINE and will continue to do so, ensuring that the goods reach those most in need during this challenging time.

The charity is also holding stock of sanitary items provided by CFINE, as part of a previous initiative in partnership with Aberdeen City Council and the Scottish Government to tackle period poverty, which will be passed back to them to allow the social enterprise to distribute care packages of this nature.

David Selkirk, Sport Aberdeen Director of Community Leisure Operations, said:

“Sport Aberdeen is a community driven charity and now more than ever it is so important to pull together and offer assistance wherever possible, as we are all in this together. 

“We will continue to work closely with CFINE to help support anyone in need and are exploring other opportunities where we can offer our assistance where it is most needed.

“I would encourage anyone who is able to donate items to do so. During these difficult times Aberdeen’s local communities have shown incredible resilience and a true sense of coming together and this is something we can all be extremely proud of.”

Lisa Duthie, CFINE Chief Executive, said:

“CFINE is grateful for the generosity of Sport Aberdeen. The highly useful donations will be put to good use to help those self-isolated individuals and families who are food insecure.

“The continued support of our donors, funders, partners and volunteers enable us to remain true to our mission, tackling poverty, during these unusual times.

“We are experiencing a significant increase in the demand for CFINE’s support services. We are delivering 1,000 emergency food parcels weekly with the help of our partners; therefore, support of any kind is much appreciated.”

Sport Aberdeen has delivered over 2,000 kg worth of exercise equipment to local customers to help keep the community active during these challenging times.

The registered charity has loaned exercise equipment to as many customers as possible while its citywide venues are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

A total of 150 customers will have equipment delivered to them over the coming days, just one of the moves the charity is making to keep people active whilst remaining safe and at home.

Over 80 body pump kits, 100 steps, 700kg of dumbbells, kettlebells and slam balls are among the items being loaned out and delivered direct to customers doors, in line with social distancing guidelines.

Sport Aberdeen received huge interest in the equipment loan scheme and has allocated items to as many customers as possible on a first come first served basis. The charity is also posting at-home workouts through its social media channels with most classes requiring no equipment at all, ensuring that everyone can remain active at this challenging time.

David Selkirk, Sport Aberdeen Director of Community Leisure Operations commented:

“The interest we received in the loan scheme was incredible and we have allocated items to as many customers as we possibly could, but due to the sheer number of applications we simply couldn’t fulfil every request.  

“We are doing what we can at this difficult time to engage with the community and help keep our customers active and motivated with online workouts and we have seen a brilliant uptake in people joining the Sport Aberdeen virtual running club on Strava.

“Whilst the interest in the equipment loan scheme has been fantastic, the vast majority of our online workouts requires no equipment at all”

Natalie Newlands, a regular at Sport Aberdeen’s Get active @ Jesmond gym, said:

“I would like to say a massive thank you to everyone at Sport Aberdeen for supporting the community and helping us all to stay active in this challenging time. I am so grateful for the loan of this equipment, this will make a huge difference to keeping me healthy and motivate me on my workouts every day! 

“All the staff and especially the Health and Wellness Coordinators have put in a lot of hard work and effort in organising and delivering the equipment. They are always making sure their members are happy and are an asset to Sport Aberdeen!”

A popular Granite City sporting festival for older adults, due to celebrate its 10^th successful year, has announced it will be postponed to ensure the safety of participants, staff and volunteers.

Due to the current Covid-19 pandemic, the Golden Games ambassadors and steering group members have taken the difficult decision to postpone the 2020 event, which was due to take place from 3 – 12 June. 

The free sporting festival, delivered by a range of citywide partners, takes pace each June across Aberdeen and offers older adults the chance to take part in a wide range of activities from sports, dance and exercise sessions to walking and aquatics activities.

On behalf of the Golden Games steering group, Sport Aberdeen Healthy Communities Manager Andrinne Craig said: 

“The wellbeing of participants, ambassadors, instructors, coaches and volunteers is paramount, and with so much uncertainty at this time, we felt it best to take this decision. 

“On behalf of everyone who works incredibly hard to bring this brilliant event to the city each year I would like to thank our participants and volunteers for the continued support, and we look forward to celebrating 10 years of the Golden Games in due course.

“Now more than ever before it is important to look after our physical and mental wellbeing and we would encourage all of our participants to remain active where possible. We are supporting our local community through online fitness routines and ongoing engagement through Spot Aberdeen’s Healthy Communities team.”

Please check the Sport Aberdeen website and Golden Games social media channels for information, updates and ways for you to remain active whilst staying safe at home.

Partners are hopeful that the event will be held later in the year and will release further details as soon as possible.

In line with Government measures in response to COVID-19, all Sport Aberdeen venues are temporarily closed until further notice.  

All monthly memberships will be automatically frozen on a month by month basis until our venues re-open, with no Direct Debits collected from 1st April onwards. For further information please click here.

To allow our members to continue to keep active while our venues are closed, we have a range of exercise, health and wellbeing resources available on our Get active @ Home page. 

Like every business, we are concerned with our survival beyond this period.  Sport Aberdeen is a charity, and we re-invest every penny made back into the communities we serve, so we would ask anyone who can maintain their membership to please stick with us, to ensure the future of Sport Aberdeen beyond this difficult time. If you would like to continue your support of Sport Aberdeen, please click here to un-freeze your membership.

We would like to thank our valued members and customers for their unwavering support, and we look forward to welcoming you back to our venues in the future.

Where can I find more information?

For the latest information and advice on COVID-19 please visit https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19

Thousands of school children from across Aberdeen will be given the opportunity to take part in physical activity as a popular sporting festival returns to the city.

The Aberdeen Youth Games is a citywide initiative developed in partnership with Sport Aberdeen’s Active Schools team, Robert Gordon University (RGU) and the North East Scotland College (NESCol).

Over 100 student coaches will deliver activities in primary schools, culminating in the Festival of Health at the Aberdeen Sports Village on 22 May.

The 2020 primary programme officially kicked off at a launch event held at RGU yesterday (Thursday 12) after a last year saw record-breaking numbers of pupils take part.

Over 160 pupils from Kaimhill Primary School attended a morning of sports and activities, delivered by RGU’s BSc (Hons) Applied Sport and Exercise Science students who will be on placement with registered charity Sport Aberdeen.

This event follows on from a hugely successful secondary youth games programme that deployed RGU students into secondary schools and hosted a festival where over 400 pupils took part in five different sports this February. 

The aim is to establish an innovative, sustainable and integrated citywide sports programme which promotes and increases physical activity in young people with this year’s focus on increasing awareness around health and wellbeing as a whole.

Graeme Dale, Sport Aberdeen Head of Sport and Active Communities, said:

“The initiative has become a hugely anticipated and enjoyable event in Aberdeen’s sporting calendar, and it underlines the importance of keeping young people active in a fun environment whilst giving students invaluable experience.

“We are proud to continue working with RGU and NESCol to deliver the games and the effort which the Active Schools teams put in to help foster a culture of physical activity amongst young people in the city is admirable.

“Year on year we are encouraged by the continued growth of the games and we are confident that 2020 will carry on this trend.”

Thomas Craig, Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science RGU, said:

“The Aberdeen Youth Games represents the culmination of months of hard work by our students and this event is their first opportunity to work in this real-life primary school environment with the pupils of Kaimhill. It is always pleasing to see their progression when we reach the 22nd May and we see real satisfaction on the students faces with this being the first opportunity for them to experience the positive impact their skills and experiences will have on the wider Aberdeen City Community.

“This unique partnership with Sport Aberdeen not only enhances the students employability options, but provides RGU the opportunity to give something back to our community that support us so well.  Sport Aberdeen is fully integrated throughout the placement and AYG process and it is a team effort, one that our students and the School of Health Science are proud to be a part of.”

Neil Tattersal, Curriculum Manager for Sport at North East Scotland College, said:

“The Aberdeen Youth Games have become a massive part of the community sporting calendar for the city and something all of our students look forward to supporting every year.

“More than 200 NESCol students from a range of sports courses will attend this year’s event and share their passion and enthusiasm for sport with the participants.

“Events like this illustrate the positive impact sport has on the local community. By working together with Active Schools and RGU to deliver the Youth Games we can encourage more children to get more active more often.”

Olympic gold medallist Dr Katherine Grainger CBE and Chairman of The Wood Foundation, Sir Ian Wood CBE, have been amongst the Aberdeen Youth Games ambassadors since its launch.

A 73-year-old Sport Aberdeen member has conquered a lifelong fear of the water and finished her final swimming assessment as part of a local adult swimming programme.

Jennifer Whittet recently completed the ‘Adult Improvers Learn to Swim’ programme at Bridge of Don Swimming Pool. The programme is delivered by Aquatics Aberdeen, part of award-winning charity Sport Aberdeen.

Jennifer recalls beginning her swimming journey whilst at primary school with the assistance of her father, but always struggled to find confidence in the water.

Now, many years on, after attending a Learn to Swim taster class as part of the city’s Golden Games in 2018, Jennifer was given a much-needed boost in confidence which sparked off a new desire to take to the water once again! She proceeded to enrol in the beginners’ class at Bridge of Don Swimming Pool where she has since gone from strength to strength.

Speaking about her time on the Sport Aberdeen Learn to Swim programme, Jennifer said:

“My favourite part of learning to swim with Sport Aberdeen was moving from the beginner to improver level. I have had great instructors who have helped me work on my strokes and helped me gain confidence in the deep end.

“My advice to anyone who feels they are too old to learn a new physical skill, be it swimming or otherwise is to give it a try. You are never too old to learn something new!

“My newfound confidence in the water means that I am no longer afraid to go swimming on my own and actually swam in the sea last time I was on holiday.” 

Dianne Breen, Sport Aberdeen Coached Programmes Manager said:

“The Learn to Swim programme’s main aim is to encourage and enable people of all ages and abilities to swim with confidence and take part in physical activity more often.  

“Stories such as Jennifer’s are a great reminder that the hard work of our instructors and the wider Aquatics Aberdeen team has a huge impact on a personal level, allowing people to learn new skills and in some cases move past barriers that have persisted for a long time, allowing our participants to really enjoy the sport.”

MORE than 11,000 Aberdeen children are learning to swim thanks to a successful partnership between Scottish Swimming, Scottish Water and local Aquatic Providers.

Children from across the region – some as young as babies – have signed up to the Learn to Swim programme which aims to create a new generation of safe and confident swimmers. 

Lessons have been run by Sport Aberdeen, Aberdeen Sports Village and Aberdeen Amateur Swimming Club at 12 pools in Aberdeen – which has allowed around 11,306 kids to come through the programme in the last three years.

Across Scotland, 39 Leisure Trusts and Aquatic Providers, covering more than 170 pools, have provided lessons to nearly 106,000 kids over the three years, smashing the target of reaching 100,000 three months ahead of schedule.

Scots pool hero Duncan Scott, the Learn to Swim programme ambassador, who is in hard training for Olympic trials, praised the success of the partnership.

Duncan, a multi Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European medal winner, said: “As someone who loves beating records, it is amazing to see that the programme has not only reached its target – it has smashed it. 

“Getting children into the pool so that they can have fun while learning how to stay safe is the number one priority. It would be amazing to see children become interested in taking a love for swimming further. 

“Whether they simply become regulars at the pool with their friends or whether this inspires the next generation of competitive swimmers who could one day represent Scotland or GB at the Olympics, nothing but good things can come from encouraging more and more children into the water.” 

The Learn to Swim programme is part of Scottish Swimming’s National Framework for Swimming in Scotland, an initiative which aims to provide quality environments for children to learn to swim. Scottish Water’s decision to form a three-year partnership with Scottish Swimming has been instrumental in allowing the Framework to be rolled out across Scotland more quickly than planned.

Alison Low, Head Teacher at Aberdeen Learn to Swim said: “Since following the Scottish Swimming Learn to Swim Framework in partnership with Scottish Water, Aberdeen Learn to Swim has continued to grow and we pride ourselves on being as inclusive and diverse as possible.  We believe every child can learn to swim and deserves the chance.” 

Dianne Breen, Coached Programmes Manager at Sport Aberdeen, said: “The Scottish Swimming scheme, which is delivered by Aquatics Aberdeen, part of registered charity Sport Aberdeen, is now widely recognised within the city as a high quality initiative and is a key component of the sustained growth in our Learn To Swim programme that has been in place since signing up to the scheme. 

“Our swimming teachers are kept fully up to date with the regular CPDs which keeps them motivated to deliver high quality lessons week-in, week-out, over the 50 weeks of the year that we operate, helping to inspire more people to engage in physical activity.” 

The Learn to Swim Framework is aimed at youngsters from birth to 11-years-old and provides consistently high-quality teaching at least once a week and which progresses through a series of lessons and levels over a number of years.

A key focus has been the drive to encourage more children with disabilities into mainstream swimming lessons, particularly through Scottish Swimming’s #SeeMyAbility campaign.

To underline that commitment, Toni Shaw, who won six medals at the recent World Para Swimming Championships, has been appointed as the programme’s second Ambassador – joining Duncan Scott. 

Euan Lowe, Scottish Swimming chief executive officer, said: “When we set the ambitious 100,000 target three years ago we were unsure when we would reach it, so, to achieve this ahead of the deadline – and some 6% ahead of target – is a terrific achievement and one that everyone connected with the programme should be proud of.

“The partnership with Scottish Water means we are reaching more children than ever before and have been able to support Sport Aberdeen by offering additional resources, enhancing the quality learn to swim experience the children and young people have. I’d like to thank Scottish Water for their ongoing support and Sport Aberdeen, Aberdeen Sports Village and Aberdeen Amateur Swimming Club who deliver the lessons each week in the local area.

“It is thrilling to see our common goals of equipping children with the skills they need to be safe in and around water are really starting to have an impact.” 

Brian Lironi, Director of External Communications with Scottish Water, said: “It is staggering to think that there are now 106,000 young people who now have the chance to learn to swim and benefit from this nationwide programme.

“We want to support a flourishing Scotland and the Learn to Swim programme is a shining example of that – encouraging children to be safe and confident in and around water at the same time as having fun. 

“We are also delighted to see that so many children with disabilities are coming through the programme, underlining that there should be no barriers to all young people learning to swim.” 

More information on the National Learn to Swim Framework and #SeeMyAbility can be found on the dedicated website: www.learntoswim.scot 

Further information and details on how to get in touch with Aberdeen Learn to Swim can be found at: https://aberdeenlts.org.uk  

A popular Granite City snowsports centre is set to run the first block of a programme for people with additional support needs since some of its members struck gold at the Special Olympics GB National Alpine Skiing Competition this month (February).

Adventure Aberdeen Snowsports, operated by award-winning charity Sport Aberdeen, runs a pathway programme for anyone from age four and over with additional support needs.

The programme aims to offer a parallel pathway to the mainstream programme in order to allow everyone in the north-east the opportunity to get involved with snowsports, regardless of age, ability or gender. 

Graeme Dale, Sport Aberdeen Head of Sport and Active Communities, said:

“Providing opportunities for all individuals, regardless of ability or any perceived barriers, to take part in sport and work together to brings a great sense of achievement to both the participants and the team. 

“As a registered charity Sport Aberdeen is committed to creating opportunities for everyone to take part in sport. We have such a brilliant facility right on our doorstep and I would encourage those who are keen to take to the slopes to get in touch.” 

Beth Woodall, Adventure Aberdeen Snowsports Senior Instructor, said: 

“I am really proud that we are able to deliver an additional support needs pathway as part of our extensive snowsports programme here in Aberdeen, and the achievements that we see week in and out, along with the smiles that come with it, are so rewarding.”  

Adventure Aberdeen Snowsports run the programme in partnership with Special Olympics Grampian to provide opportunities for eligible athletes to take part in Special Olympics registered events. 

Special Olympics Grampian Area (SOGA) athlete, Emily Plant who trains on the pathway programme recently won a gold medal in the Giant Slalom event at the Special Olympics GB National Alpine Skiing Competition in Switzerland.  

Speaking of the importance of the additional support needs pathway programme, Emily Plant said:

“The programme is great because the instructors are really friendly, and you get to meet people with disabilities like yourself. 

“You go on trips away with your friends to new countries competing on snow and having lots of fun. I am very lucky to be a part of the programme.” 

If you are interested in participating in the Adventure Aberdeen Snowsports ASN programme, which will commence on 26 February, please email snowsports@sportaberdeen.co.uk

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Staff in care homes across the north-east are being provided with the skills to lead their own strength and balance sessions thanks to a popular partnership designed to improve quality of life through walking.

Sport Aberdeen and ‘Paths for All’, a charity that aims to significantly increase the number of people who choose to walk in Scotland, are set to run a training programme for Bon Accord Care staff working at sheltered housing complexes in Aberdeen.

The First Steps programme, which successfully delivered training to 13 Bon Accord Care staff from nine sheltered housing complexes in November last year, will allow them to promote and provide regular physical activity sessions for their residents.

The First Steps programme, which is run by Sport Aberdeen’s Healthy Communities team with funding from Paths for All, aims to increase functional fitness and daily walking amongst people not currently able to take part in walking groups.

Jill Franks, Sport Aberdeen Director of Performance and Planning, said:

“Sport Aberdeen and Paths for All share a mutual goal of getting more people active, regardless of age, ability or situation and we are delighted to be working together to help deliver these training sessions with Bon Accord Care.

 “The training sessions have already proved to be a powerful tool in enabling those living in sheltered housing to improve their mobility and access a better quality of life through regular activity and we are looking forward to helping bring this training to even more staff in the coming sessions.

“By encouraging regular strength and balance exercises and going for short, low level walks, these sessions enable people to be more active and able to undertake the tasks of daily living such as walking in and around the home and to the shops”

Speaking of the upcoming training course, Louise McCann, Bon Accord Care Reablement Facilitator and Falls Quality Improvement Lead said:

“We have arranged the training for the staff team at Quarryhill Court as part of the Bon Accord Care Falls Management Quality Improvement Group. The group made up of support staff, supervisors and Occupational Therapists were keen to focus on engaging tenants in early intervention and promoting self-management.

“It is our intention that these sessions will be provided across all buildings supported by Bon Accord Care staff”