Elliot McHugh details 'great experience' at School Sport and Activity Sector Summit

Volunteer and water polo player Elliot McHugh has spoken of the ‘great experience’ he had while attending the School Sport and Activity Sector Summit which was held recently at Wembley Stadium.

As a member of the National Youth Sport Forum, McHugh was invited to attend the summit and engage in conversation about the future of sport and activity in schools.

McHugh is also the vice-chair of the Swim England National Youth Advisory Panel and also maintains an international sporting career as a water polo goalkeeper for Great Britain.

Speaking on the event, he said: “It was a great experience attending the Sport England sector summit representing Swim England, the National Youth Sport Forum and the water polo community.

“Being able to speak with a number of key stakeholders in the school sports community opened up my professional network and allowed me to offer an insight into the key issues that face our young people.

“With our generation facing a number of growing issues in sport such as mental health and accessibility, this meeting was a chance to break down the barriers to participation and encourage our youth to lead healthier lives.”

‘Echo the concerns of young people’

The purpose of the summit was to continue to evolve and progress the collective work in response to the School Sport & Activity Action Plan, which is a ‘cross-government action plan to provide pupils with greater opportunity to access 60 minutes of sport and physical activity every day.

The voice and opinion of young people is crucial to the development and implementation of such plans – something which McHugh says he hopes they accurately portrayed.

“I hope that during my time at the event I was able to echo the concerns of our young people and raise the profile of aquatic sports like water polo,” he said.

“Attending the event at an amazing venue like Wembley stadium was also exciting – it’s not often you get the opportunity to attend a meeting at one of the greatest sporting stadiums in the world!

“I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity to give back to the community.”

Image credit: Elliot McHugh, pictured with DCMS head of sport strategy, Simon Mason, and Youth Sport Trust CEO, Ali Oliver.