The number of young people aged 16-24 in the UK not in education, employment or training (NEET) is surging year on year. The latest update from the Office for National Statistics shared that number has risen by 11,000 over the last 3 months, taking the current total to 957,000 young people.

My Personal Best (My PB) is an approach that helps young people develop essential life skills through physical education (PE) and physical activity. The intention is that by developing skills and learning to articulate them effectively, they will be better supported and prepared for future employment. Through funding from the Department for Education’s Inclusion 2028 grant, the programme has extended specifically for pupils in Alternative Provision (AP) and Pupil Referral Units (PRUs).

The programme trains staff to use using movement-based activities to connect learning in PE with skills needed for everyday life, including resilience, confidence, teamwork and self-management. Each school is provided with resources and support to plan how these skills can be reinforced consistently across their setting into everyday practice.

The feedback from APs and PRUs highlights that My PB is particularly impactful for pupils who are disengaged from learning, struggle with attendance, experience behavioural or social emotional difficulties, or are exploring vocational pathways. As a result of engagement with the programme, these settings have reported improvements in pupils’ engagement and an increase in physical activity levels, improved behaviour, increased concentration and increased attendance.

My Personal Best in Action

Uppingham Community College

Uppingham Community College in Rutland has recently begun implementing the My PB approach within its AP. The early focus has been on supporting students to improve their decision making both in and outside of lessons. This aims to help young people recognise any mistakes they make, understand the impact of their behaviour and, over time, take greater accountability for their actions. Encouraging students to pause and think before reacting is intended to support not only their academic engagement but their wider personal growth.

The programme initially targeted twelve students who had been referred through the school’s pastoral referral system. These pupils were identified as needing additional support with behaviour, self-management or emotional regulation. Developing these skills was considered particularly important for this group of students, as improved reflection and self-regulation can reduce behaviour incidents and lead to more positive interactions across the school environment.

My Personal Best has been integrated into the range of interventions offered through the AP, including through practical activities such as gardening, gym sessions, cooking and Breakfast Club. During these sessions, staff explicitly highlighted the life skill being focused on, discussing what it looks like in practice and how it applies to the activity at hand. Students were encouraged to give examples, share experiences and reflect on how these skills could be transferred to other lessons or situations outside of school. In particular, this has helped students to see the value of the skills and increases their willingness to engage with the reflective process.

Although it is still early in the programme’s development, initial signs show that students are beginning to understand the meaning and purpose of the life skills explored through My PB. They are starting to articulate why these skills matter and how they relate to their own experiences in school.  

The school plans to continue embedding My PB into all AP interventions and strengthen its use as students become more familiar with the approach. Over time, there is potential to involve families more closely and align the approach more deeply with classroom practice beyond AP.

Vanguard School

At Vanguard School, the practitioners introduced My PB in PE to strengthen expectations and behaviour, particularly among Year 7 and Year 8 students. The aim was to help learners understand key life‑skill themes and apply them both during PE lessons and across the wider school environment, supporting clearer boundaries and more positive conduct.

The pilot involved nine Year 7 students, all of whom had Education, Health and Care Plans and attended a special educational needs school. PE staff and learning mentors delivered the programme collaboratively, embedding My PB at the start and end of lessons and revisiting the themes throughout each session.

As a result, students showed improved engagement and attendance and became more confident in identifying and demonstrating life‑skills such as resilience, teamwork, and respect. Staff also observed a reduction in behaviour‑related incidents in PE, as well as throughout the school, reflected in fewer recorded entries on the school’s safeguarding and behaviour monitoring system. New PE equipment purchased through the bursary further increased motivation and helped enhance the learning environment.

One challenge was encouraging students to complete reflective activities, as some preferred to maximise their time being physically active. Staff addressed this by keeping reflections short, using verbal discussion, and integrating reflective moments into the lesson rather than placing them only at the end.

Looking ahead, the school plans to extend My Personal Best to Year 8 students this year and embed the approach fully across the new Year 7 cohort next year. This will ensure it becomes a consistent part of the Key Stage 3 curriculum, supporting expectations, transitions, and personal development from the outset.

Adaptability has been central to the programme’s success, with staff reporting that the best results were achieved by responding to pupil needs, adapting lessons, and using the programme’s themes in a way that best suits their setting.

You can find out more about Inclusion 2028 and My Personal Best for Alternative Provision through our website. Or alternatively, you can reach out to the Youth Sport Trust Inclusion Team on [email protected]