Licence  

How long does the licence last for? 

A licence lasts for the academic year when you purchase. If you purchase in September 2025, it will last for the full 2025/26 academic year until 31 July 2026. 

Can we purchase a licence during the school year? 

Yes, you can purchase at any point for delivery in the remainder of the academic year. 

Does the licence renew each year? 

Yes. The licence period is for the year from 1 August to 31 July of the following year. Every June the Leadership Skills Foundation will raise a renewal invoice for the licence as purchased in the previous year. 

How do we opt out of renewal? 

If you are not planning to continue with the licence, you must inform the Leadership Skills Foundation through the Awards Centre Withdrawal Form by 31 May of the current licenced year. E.g, a centre who wishes to withdraw for the 2026/27 licence year must notify the Leadership Skills Foundation by 31 May 2026.  

We are keen to do this but are a middle school, so we have primary and secondary. How much would this be for us?  

It would be costed at the secondary school rate, and you will have access to all stages to ensure it is appropriate for all your pupils. 

Is there a licence price for a cluster of schools or multi academy trusts? 

Please contact the Leadership Skills Foundation to discuss this further via [email protected] 

Can I use this in Scotland and Wales? 

Yes, the PELSA framework and accreditation can be used across the UK. 

Award delivery  

Do we need to be approved to deliver the PE Life Skills Award (PELSA)? 

Yes, when schools register to deliver PELSA, you will be asked to complete a short online form to outline your delivery plans, confirm you have the relevant policies in place and outline if there is any support you require.  

How do we know if we are approved? 

Your approval form will be reviewed by the accreditation team at the Leadership Skills Foundation. You will receive an email to confirm that you are approved along with a certificate to recognise you as an Approved Awards Centre for delivering PELSA. 

Do we need to complete any training? 

There is no formal training required to deliver PELSA, but guidance is provided through the Teacher Handbook and recorded support videos. 

Is there a limit on the number of pupils who can complete the award? 

There is no limit on the number of pupils within your school that can complete the award. 

Can we select specific groups to complete this project with e.g. not a whole cohort? 

Yes.  You can deliver PELSA with whichever cohort(s) within your school you feel would benefit the most. The award has been differentiated into five stages so that you can find the appropriate stage(s). 

How long does it take for the students to complete it? 

There is no set time frame to complete. This is entirely dependent on the pupils. It may take some pupils one year to complete a stage, others it may take longer. It is important that you only sign off completion when the supporting evidence reflects the embedding of that life skill at the appropriate stage as laid out in the criteria and award framework. 

What sort of activities do they complete, or does it run alongside their normal PE lessons?  

The award will be competed in normal planned and progressive PE lessons ensuring there is an explicit focus on the life skill aspect. To complete the award pupils must demonstrate and evidence progress in two learning environments, one must be PE, the other can be physical activity (breaks and lunch time structured play), extra-curricular, school sport (intra and/or inter) and community. 

Would there have to be additional time allocated for PE? 

No additional time is needed in PE to complete the award. 

Resources  

What resources are provided? 

When registering for PELSA you will be provided with access to an online resources site, which includes all documents needed to deliver the award. This includes: Teacher Handbook, Stage Frameworks, Learning Journals, Teacher Reports, Wallchart Trackers and PowerPoints. 

Can we see example resources? 

Sample resources are available online here. 

Are all resources online or physical? 

All resources are provided online and are printable. Learning Journals can be completed digitally through editable PDF versions provided. 

Assessment  

How does the assessment tool work? 

PELSA has been developed to be embedded into PE and school sport delivery.  The tool provides an achievement framework that identifies key life skills through the four domains of PE and school sport and provides the pupil with a Learning Journal to record their life skills development through PE and school sport. 

What criteria are the pupils assessed against as it would need to fit into our curriculum? 

Pupils are assessed against criteria set out in the framework at each of the five stages. Your curriculum approach should consider how life skills are explicitly taught. 

How is the award assessed? 

Pupils will demonstrate the achievement of life skills throughout the award, and document these through a Learning Journal or by gathering evidence through alternative methods. Teachers need to complete a simple ‘Your Progress through PE Report’ to confirm achievement for each pupil and provide them with some feedback on their progress. 

Would you suggest using this as a separate Sports Leaders type unit of work or is it meant to be embedded throughout the normal curriculum? 

This should be used to evidence the life skills development that has been embedded throughout the curriculum. A separate delivery unit is not required. If delivering sports leadership, this is an ideal opportunity to evidence PELSA through sports leadership curriculum too. 

Certification and Evidence  

How would the evidence be collected and evidenced to achieve the award?  

There is a Learning Journal available for each stage of the award. This can be used to collate evidence of life skills learning. If a pupil requires an alternative to written evidence, the Learning Journal can be used as a prompt that the pupil can then use an alternative method to evidence the learning e.g. verbal, scribed, create a video, draw etc. 

How do we get the certificates? 

When you are ready to certificate learners for completing, please complete this online ‘Awards Completion and Feedback Form’ with your feedback and details of the numbers of learners that have completed each stage. The accreditation team at the Leadership Skills Foundation will review this and then provide access to the certificates for the stage(s) of the award that you have delivered. 

If you have any further questions, please do get in touch.