Playing for Success http://www.playingforsuccessonline.org.uk is an initiative in England set up by the Department for Children, Schools and Families

Department for Children, Schools and Families

The Department for Children, Schools and Families was a department of the UK government, between 2007 and 2010, responsible for issues affecting people in England up to the age of 19, including child protection and education...

, aims to focus on raising literacy

Literacy

Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...

, numeracy

Numeracy

Numeracy is the ability to reason with numbers and other mathematical concepts. A numerically literate person can manage and respond to the mathematical demands of life...

 and ICT

Information and communication technologies

Information and communications technology or information and communication technology, usually abbreviated as ICT, is often used as an extended synonym for information technology , but is usually a more general term that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of...

 standards amongst demotivated KS2

Key Stage 2

Key Stage 2 is the legal term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6, when pupils are aged between 7 and 11. The term is applied differently in Northern Ireland where it refers to pupils in Year 5, Year 6 and...

 and KS3

Key Stage 3

Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14...

 pupils .
by holding out of school hours study support centres at football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 clubs and other sports’ grounds. The centres use the environment and medium of football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

, rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 and other sports to help motivate pupils identified by their schools, as being in need of a boost to help them get back up to speed in literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology.

These Study Support Centres are staffed by centre managers, who are qualified and experienced teachers, supported by higher education

Higher education

Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...

 and further education students working as mentors.

The scheme started in 1997, when the Department for Education and Skills supported a small pilot which was held in FA Premier League

FA Premier League

The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...

 it was extended to Nationwide Division one clubs a couple of years later. This scheme extended twice since 2004, through a new partnership between the Football Foundation and the Department for Education and Skills. The extension saw new centres open around the country, mainly by involving new sports such as Rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

, Rugby League Cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

, Hockey

Hockey

Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...

, Tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

, Gymnastics

Gymnastics

Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...

, Basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

, Ice Hockey and Horseracing. In January 2008, 162 football and other sports’ clubs are involved, with 159 centres open to date, benefiting 210,00 pupils so far.

Study Support Centres

Region	Study Support Centres
South West	Bath Rugby, Bristol City FC, Cheltenham Racecourse, pong Cornish Pirates, Delaware Adventure Zone for Learning, Gloucester Rugby FC, Oxford United FC, Portsmouth FC, Somerset County Cricket Club, Southampton FC, Yeovil Town FC, AFC Bournemouth Bristol Rovers FC, Forest Green Rovers FC and Plymouth Argyle FC
London & South East	Arsenal FC, Brighton and Hove Albion FC, Charlton Athletic FC, Chelsea FC, Colchester United FC, Crystal Palace FC, East London Gymnastics Club, Eton Manor RUFC, Fulham FC. Gillingham FC, Hitchin Town FC, John Nike Leisuresport Complex, Kent CCC, King's Lynn Stars Speedway Club, Lea Valley Athletics Club, Leyton Orient FC, London Aquatics Centre, Millwall FC, Norwich City FC, North Walsham Rugby Football Club, Queens Park Rangers FC, Reading FC, Surrey County Cricket Club, Sussex County Cricket Club, Swindon Town FC, The All England Lawn Tennis Club, Tottenham Hotspur FC, Watford FC, Wembley Stadium, West Ham United FC, Woking FC, Brentford FC, Cambridge United FC, Southend United FC and Tooting and Mitcham FC.
Midlands & East	Aston Villa FC, Bedford Sports and Hockey Centre/Bedford Rugby Club, Birmingham City FC, Boston United FC, Coventry City FC, Coventry RUFC, Derby County FC, Derbyshire CCC, Dunstall Racecourse, Ipswich Town FC, King's Lynn Stars, Leicester City FC, Leicester Tigers Rugby Union FC, Leicestershire County Cricket Club, Milton Keynes Dons (MK Dons), Moseley Rugby Club, National Stud, Northampton County Cricket Club, Northampton Saints Rugby Football Club, Nottingham Forest FC, Oulton Broad Water Sports Centre, Port Vale FC, Silverstone Motor Racing Circuit / Rockingham Speedway, Stoke City FC, Telford Tigers Ice Hockey Club, The City of Nottingham Tennis Centre, The National Ice Centre, Walsall FC, West Bromwich Albion FC, Wolverhampton Wanderers FC, Worcester Rugby Club, AFC Telford, Burton Albion FC, Lincoln City FC, Mansfield Town FC, Northampton Town FC and Rushden and Diamonds FC.
North West	Blackburn Rovers Football & Athletic plc, Blackpool FC, Bolton Wanderers FC Burnley FC, Crewe Alexandra FC, Everton FC, Lancashire County Crown Green Bowling Association, Leigh Centurions RLFC, Liverpool FC, Manchester City FC, Manchester United FC, Preston North End FC, Sale Harriers Athletics Club, Stockport County FC/Sale Sharks RFU, Thongsbridge Tennis Club, Tranmere Rovers FC, Warrington Wolves Rugby League, Werneth Cricket Club, Wigan Warriors Rugby League Club, Barrow AFC, Carlisle United FC, Oldham Athletic FC and Rochdale FC/Rochdale Hornets RLFC.
North	Barnsley FC , Batley Bulldogs RLFC, Bradford Bulls Rugby League Club, Dewsbury Rams RLFC, Earth Titans (Rotherham Titans RUFC), English Institute of Sport, Featherstone Rovers RLFC, Halifax RLFC, Huddersfield Town AFC, Keighley Cougars RLFC, Leeds Rhinos RLFC/Leeds, Tykes RUFC, Leeds United FC, Rotherham United FC,ShawLane Community Sports Centre, Sheffield Sharks Basketball, Sheffield United FC, Sheffield Wednesday FC, St Helens RLFC, Wakefield Trinity Wildcats RLFC, Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Doncaster Rovers FC / Doncaster Lakers RLC / Doncaster Belles Ladies FC.
North East	Blyth Spartans FC, Durham Amateur Rowing Club, Durham County Cricket Club, Grimsby Town FC, Heslam Park Rugby and Cricket Club (Study Parks), Hull AFC/Hull City FC, Hull Kingston Rovers RLFC, Middlesbrough FC, Newcastle Falcons , Newcastle United FC, Sunderland AFC, Darlington FC, Hartlepool United FC and Scunthorpe United FC (Study Parks).