School Sport Unit

Planned physical activity includes physical education, weekly sport, and other structured physical activities (OSPA).

Physical Education (PE) is a mandatory part of Personal Development, Health, and Physical Education (PDHPE).

Structured physical activity can be planned for any time during the school day, such as recess, lunch, or during other learning experiences run by the school.

If the travel time involves walking or physical activity, then it can be included. If travel doesn’t involve any exercise, for example, sitting on a bus, then it should not be included.

No. The revised policy requires a consistent approach to providing students with 150 minutes of physical activity per week. This time needs to be met through activities that would normally happen as part of the weekly timetable.

Yes. As per the policy, student participation in physical activity can include time spent in physical education, sport, and other structured physical activities. As with all KLA's there are mandatory hours required. The time spent in practical activities (physical education) of PDHPE can be accounted towards the PDHPE mandatory time as well as in the 150 minutes required by the Sport and Physical Activity policy.

Therefore the theoretical aspect of PDHPE often referred to as Health lessons, do not count towards the 150 minutes of physical activity required by the Sport and Physical Activity Policy.

Sample whole school physical activity timetables are available to help schools understand how their timetable may fit the policy requirements.

Other structured physical activity usually refers to planned physical activity other than physical education and weekly sport. It can be planned for other times of the school day such as at recess, lunch or in any other learning experiences conducted by the school. 

Planning regular energisers and learning in Key Learning Areas through physical activity is an effective way to avoid overcrowding the school week. Research shows that incorporating regular physical activity will help to engage students, break up long periods of sitting and increase concentration levels of students. 

When including other structured physical activity as part of the 150 minutes per week, schools need to ensure they can account for all students in their school and that it is sustainable as part of regular programming and planning. For example, a lunchtime soccer competition that runs for a term and is only available to a limited number of students could not be included in the 150 minutes of physical activity. 

Go to the Sample whole school physical activity timetables section of the website for more information including energisers and sample Thinking while moving lesson plans.

Physical Education is part of the Key Learning Area (KLA) of Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE). PDHPE is mandatory for all students in NSW from Kindergarten to Year 10. PDHPE aims to influence the cognitive, affective and psychomotor development of students. The NSW syllabus documents detail the expected learning for students in terms of the skills, knowledge, values, and attitudes required to be confident and competent participants in physical activity across their life course.

School Sport is a valued and accepted part of the school’s curriculum offering students opportunities to participate in physical activities according to their interests and abilities in a range of contexts and environments. For weekly school sport, schools are able to design their own programs. Programs may involve intra-school sport, inter-school sport, recreational pursuits or a combination of the activities.

The document will detail local information about the school’s sport and physical activity program to staff, students, parents and caregivers. The Sport and Physical Activity Policy and its implementation document, the Sport and Physical Activity in Schools Safe Conduct Guidelines must be followed when designing the local procedures document.

Local information will include operational processes, safety responsibilities, resourcing implications, delivery and evaluation processes to support quality sport and physical activity programs. The procedures should reflect the ethos of the school and establish a framework and context for sport and physical activity within the school community.

For assistance in developing or reviewing your school's procedures document please see the Meeting sport policy requirements section of the TPL page to view the procedures for school sport courses. 

Fact sheets are available to provide basic information regarding the Sport and Physical Activity Policy.

• Requirements for schools (DOXC 99KB)
• Rationale for change (DOCX 99.5KB)
• Planned physical activity DOCX 98KB)
• Safe conduct of sport and physical activity in schools (DPCX 99.8KB)
• School-developed sport procedures (DOCX 101KB)
• 150 minutes of weekly planned physical activity (DOCX 100.5KB)
• Frequency and intensity of physical activity (DOCX 100KB)