MORE than 1,500 secondary and middle schools across the country will be hosting weekly badminton sessions as Badminton England look to take the sport to a younger fanbase.
The ‘SmashUp!’ roadshow visits Melksham Oak Community School on October 14 and Abbeyfield School in Chippenham on October 15, hoping to encourage more young people to get on court as part of the ‘PE Takeover Tour’.
SmashUp! badminton sessions are fun, sociable activities, with big -itting badminton challenges and innovative court games, all set to a music playlist aimed at young people.
The nationwide tour of 18 secondary and middle schools around the country will let SmashUp! take over their sports hall and ‘hijack’ the entire PE schedule for the day to inspire more pupils to take up the sport.
Julia Strong, National Game Director at Badminton England, said: “SmashUp! has proved hugely popular since its launch a few years ago, with badminton one of only a handful of sports showing increases in getting 11-15 year olds active.
“Sessions are now hosted weekly in over 1,500 schools nationwide, making it accessible to 1.1 million pupils, and we have high hopes that this autumn roadshow will encourage even more young people on court.”
Badminton England has high hopes that the tour will deliver similar results seen in 2014, when a similar activity saw some school badminton clubs see attendance increase by 40% and SmashUp! sessions register more than 30,000 players.
To follow the tour and get connected both on and off court with Badminton England’s youth badminton channels, visit badmintonengland.co.uk/racketheads.
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