Free practical guidance · Schools & PE Leads
Leading PE with too much on your list?
You may have inherited PE, a half-finished action plan and plenty of opinions about what needs doing. Get a usable picture of the current position, then choose the work that deserves your limited time.
Read the practical guideDIY toolkit or APEX helpGet enough information to make a decision
Start with the curriculum overview, current action plan, staff feedback and participation information you already hold. Speak to the people teaching PE and ask pupils about their experience. You are looking for a few useful findings, not creating a folder to prove you have been busy.
- What is working and worth protecting?
- Where are pupils struggling to learn or take part?
- Which problems keep coming back for staff?
- What has already been agreed, funded or given a deadline?
Keep urgent safety or safeguarding concerns within your school’s immediate reporting procedures. They should not wait for a routine PE improvement plan.
Separate a finding from a possible solution
“Buy a new scheme” is a proposed action. “Teachers cannot explain how this year’s learning builds on last year’s” is a finding to investigate. Check a sample of plans and talk to staff before committing time or money to a solution.
For each finding, note the evidence, who is affected and what you still need to check. Treat an isolated comment as a useful question rather than a conclusion about the whole school.
Choose a manageable first set of priorities
APEX recommends starting with two or three improvements you can actually follow through. Consider the effect on pupils, the urgency and what staff can realistically change alongside teaching.
A practical action-plan entry
Finding: teachers are unsure how to adapt one games unit so everyone practises the intended learning.
Action: the PE lead and year-group team review one lesson, try the adjustments and share what worked.
Owner and timing: name the person coordinating it and agree a review date with the team.
Check: look again at pupils’ involvement and learning, alongside staff feedback. Attending a meeting alone will not tell you whether teaching improved.
Keep the plan usable during a busy term
Give every priority an owner, a next action and a review date. Be clear about any support or decision needed from a senior leader. Keep a separate later list so that good ideas do not silently become this term’s commitments.
At the review, decide whether to continue, adjust or stop. Record a short explanation and the next decision. The number of completed actions matters less than whether the original problem is improving.
This is a practical approach to subject leadership, not a statutory format. Ofsted’s PE subject report can inform your review of curriculum and teaching; it is not a checklist of documents to produce.
The checks and examples here are APEX practical recommendations. They are not prescribed documents or an Ofsted checklist.
Prefer to do it yourself?
PE Lead Audit & 90-Day Roadmap
Review provision, identify priorities and turn findings into a realistic improvement plan.
£29 · existing DIY toolkit
View the £29 toolkitShort on time or want another pair of eyes?
Tell us what you’re currently working with and where you’re stuck. We’ll look at what you need and let you know the simplest way we can help.
We’ll agree the scope, price and timing before work starts. You don’t need to buy the toolkit or book a meeting to enquire.
Tell us what’s taking up your timeWhere to go next
If the priority is teaching confidence, start with staff development needs. If it is spending and reporting, use the PE Premium evidence guide.
Not sure what needs attention? The free Primary PE Health Check can help you start a wider review.