Engagement over compliance, Liam Gould and Teresa Shackleton

The Primary PE Huddle

This week on the podcast we welcome two of the team from Wodensfield Primary School, Deputy Headteacher Liam Gould and PE Lead Teresa Shackleton.

Who is Liam Gould?

Liam is Deputy Headteacher of Wodensfield Primary School. Liam has over twenty years’ experience working in schools and leadership roles, but his passion has always been in sport and PE.

From a young age Liam’s parents provided him with lots of opportunities to play and participate in different sports. Liam’s first official participation in sport was playing for a local junior football team, as he moved into his teens this expanded to cricket, tennis, table tennis and golf. This engagement with sports has continued into adulthood. Liam continues to play golf and has a handicap of 5, he coaches his son’s (U12’s) and daughter’s (U9’s) football teams, valuing the chance to provide his own children and their teammates with key opportunities to lead healthy lives. All this means most of Liam’s days are taken up by sport.

And why teaching? Liam had great teachers, two of them being PE teachers. Liam wants to be that role model and difference in a child’s life. Having been fortunate to attend great educational establishments – Thomas Telford CTC and Worcester University – Liam wants to replicate in his own school what he has seen and experienced for it to be the best place it can be for learning.

Who is Teresa Shackleton?

Teresa is a Year 5 teacher and PE Lead at Wodensfield Primary School. Teresa has been teaching since 1995, having qualified as a secondary trained teacher of PE and English from the University of Brighton and subsequently worked as a teacher and Head of PE at schools in the West Midlands.

After taking a break to have her three girls, Teresa’s keen interest in PE within the primary setting led her to return to the primary sector.

Teresa has always had a passion for sport, having played volleyball and competed in athletics both at a regional level.

With sports-mad children, Teresa has taken her daughters to dance, gymnastics and swimming from a young age. Through their gymnastics, Teresa was able to coach and is a qualified Level 2 coach, with an additional cheerleading qualification, training that she’s found useful in her role at Wodensfield as she’s able to provide a higher-level gymnastics experience.

Teresa’s daughters now play netball and basketball at a high level, and she hopes to provide similar experiences to the children at Wodensfield, making them aware of the sporting opportunities out there.

Teresa’s primary wish for the children at Wodensfield is that she and her colleagues are able to show them the joy that physical activity can bring, regardless of the form that it may take. Teresa hopes that the children leave in Year 6 with a passion for being active that they share with others and lasts a lifetime.

What’s discussed in the episode?

• The importance of collaboration in primary schools to drive a whole school approach to physical activity
• Delegation of tasks
• Riding the highs and lows together
• The difference between primary vs secondary school PE from a PE lead position
• Progression of children from the start to the end of their primary school life
• How to support the confidence of staff when delivering PE