Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to increase the take-up of dancing in schools to help tackle childhood obesity.

Dance can play an important role in engaging pupils in physical activity. The National Curriculum for physical education (PE) includes specific requirements on dance at Key Stages 1-3. In Key Stages 1 and 2 pupils should be taught to perform dances using movement patterns. At Key Stage 3 pupils should be taught to perform dances using advanced dance techniques in a range of dance styles and forms.

Schools are free to decide how to offer dance as part of a diverse and challenging PE curriculum that suits the needs of all their pupils and it is up to schools to decide what extra-curricular activity they provide for their pupils. The PE and Sport premium provides £320 million a year funding to primary schools to make additional and sustainable improvements to the quality of PE and sport they offer, which can include dance.

The Government published School Sport and Activity Action Plan in July 2019. It sets out actions to support schools to increase engagement and participation in PE, school sport and extra-curricular activities. The actions set out will be developed further and reflected in an updated plan in due course.