Physical Education: Obesity
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to increase the number of hours of PE lessons available to schoolchildren to help tackle obesity.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The government has committed to support more children to be active by protecting time for physical education (PE) and by empowering more schools to provide high-quality PE for all pupils.
PE is a compulsory subject in the national curriculum for all four key stages and aims to ensure pupils lead healthy and active lives. The department does not mandate time for any subject, including PE.
On 19 June, my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, announced next steps for the future of PE and sport in schools. The government will co-design PE and School Sport Partnership networks with the sector. We are looking to develop and build strong partnerships between schools, National Governing Bodies, local organisations and clubs, with the aim of increasing equal access for children to high-quality PE and extracurricular sport. Further details, including funding, will be outlined in due course and we expect to launch the partnerships from autumn 2026.
The department also launched an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review in 2024 which seeks to deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative, so that all children and young people do not miss out on subjects such as music, art, PE and drama. The interim report was published in March 2025, and the final report will be published in the autumn with the government’s response. Departmental officials are now working on the next phase of the Review, which is considering subject-specific issues including PE, and are working with external experts.
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