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Leaders have called on the government to delay the rollout of its new school sports “partnership network”, warning the scrapping of direct PE premium funding has left them unable to plan for next year.��

Under plans announced last month��by the Department for Education, the PE and sport premium will be replaced by a network of sports bodies providing support to schools -��with yearly funding around��20 per cent less��than current levels.��

School leaders have told 91���� that schools in disadvantaged and rural areas risk missing out under the new model, and that the timing - coming late in the budget planning cycle - is “hugely detrimental”.

The current premium provides direct funding to primary schools��to help them improve PE and sport.

Payments are based on pupil numbers and came to £320 million a year, or £17,800 to the average mainstream primary school, in 2025-26.

The new network will be backed by £580 million over three years, and is due to be fully operational from Spring 2027. However, funding will no longer go directly to schools.��

Instead, money��will be directed to a national organisation, which will work with sport governing bodies to provide “universal and targeted” support to schools.

Schools ‘very concerned’

A Schools North East survey has found that more than 150 primary schools were concerned about the replacement, with more than 80 per cent��“very concerned”.

Two-thirds had no confidence that schools serving the most disadvantaged communities would fare as well under the new model.

Writing for 91���� today, Chris Zarraga, director of Schools North East, said the funding was “not simply an add-on” for schools, but paid for transport to fixtures and swimming lessons in rural areas, where the nearest pool may be miles away.

In special schools, the premium paid for occupational therapists who write bespoke sensory programmes and therapy-based physical activity that “no central partnership can replicate”, he added.

Schools ‘deep into’ budget planning

Meanwhile, in a letter to education secretary Bridget Phillipson seen by 91����, Gary Lewis, chief executive of the Lighthouse Schools Partnership, said he did not object to the change itself, but was concerned about the timing and “current lack of detail”.

He warned schools were already “deep into the planning” for the 2026-27 academic year, with the trust’s 34 schools due to complete budget planning this week before governance processes and the Budget Forecast Return to the DfE in August.

Introducing a significant change at this stage is “hugely detrimental” and would cause additional work for leaders and decisions being taken “in haste”, Mr Lewis said.��

He added that many schools had already entered contracts for next year with staff and external organisations, which they would not be able to break at short notice.

The DfE announced a one-off £100 million PE premium payment to support primary schools during the transition year.

But Mr Lewis said schools had not yet been told how much transitional funding they would receive, or what existing activities would receive ongoing support from the new network, making it “impossible” to plan.��

‘Devastating blow’ to school sport

Lee Mason-Ellis, chief executive of The Pioneer Academy, said the removal of the premium was a “devastating blow” to schools and pupils, and the trust stands to lose about £250,000 in funding.��

He said removing the funding with “such little notice” was “irresponsible” and risked reducing opportunities for disadvantaged children.

Luke Kimberley, head of PE at The Pioneer Academy, warned schools would now be forced to make “difficult choices” and may have to scale back programmes that had become central to pupils’ education and development.

One multi-academy trust chief executive, who did not want to be named, questioned how much of the new funding would reach schools directly and how much would be spent on a national delivery partner.

Governors warn over funding uncertainty

Emma Balchin, chief executive of the National Governance Association, said many boards were now in the final stages of scrutinising and approving budgets for the next academic year.

Funding changes at this point “inevitably require plans and assumptions to be revisited”, she said.��

For some maintained schools, budgets may already have been submitted, meaning governing boards will need to work with school leaders and local authorities to understand the implications, Ms Balchin added.

The Confederation of School Trusts has urged the government to delay implementation of the new system until September 2027.