A successful first year of the innovative Aviva Tackling Numbers programme was celebrated in style yesterday by Ministers and international rugby legends at a special event at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster.
Successful first year of Aviva-sponsored numbers programme celebrated at Westminster reception
A successful first year of the innovative Aviva Tackling Numbers programme was celebrated in style yesterday by Ministers and international rugby legends at a special event at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster.
Among the VIP guests at the celebration this afternoon was Tracey Crouch, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Sport. She was joined by former England rugby stars Will Greenwood and Austin Healey, who are Aviva ambassadors and supporters of Aviva Tackling Numbers. Also present were key stakeholders of the programme as well as teachers and children from participating schools.
Aviva Tackling Numbers is an innovative and engaging programme for 7-9 year olds, which makes learning about numbers and basic financial literacy fun, exciting and rewarding. It integrates interactive classroom maths sessions with practical, number-based tag rugby games. It uses the unique appeal of Aviva Premiership Rugby as the vehicle to deliver a range of numeracy challenges in a new and exciting way. In-depth resources have been produced for teachers to download for free online and use in the classroom.
During the first year of the scheme, 13,500 children in 265 schools were engaged through the club programme, which is delivered by each of the 12 Aviva Premiership Rugby clubs across the country from Exeter to Newcastle. There were more than 600 downloads of the free online resources last season.
Aviva asked teachers, parents and children about the programme, both before and after taking part to find out their thoughts on its impacts. This survey highlighted the following successes:
- 83% of parents have seen an increased awareness of the importance of maths in everyday life for their child
- 91% of teachers would recommend Aviva Tackling Numbers
- 80% of teachers rated the programme effective in teaching national curriculum numeracy
- 70% of parents say that their child’s enjoyment of physical activity has increased
- After taking part in Aviva Tackling Numbers an extra 20% of children described themselves as “really confident” in maths
- 26% increase in the proportion of children who do a lot of sport outside of school compared to before the programme
- 73% of teachers will continue to use the Aviva Tackling Numbers resources in the future
Other highlights of the first season include being awarded the PFEG (Personal Finance Education Group) Quality Mark after an independent assessment by the UK’s leading financial education charity and setting a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title at the Aviva Premiership Rugby Final at Twickenham as 323 children took part in the world’s longest human representation of a mathematical equation on the pitch.
Guests at the Parliamentary reception were addressed by Mark Pawsey MP and Austin Healey as well as representatives from Aviva and Premiership Rugby about the importance of financial literacy among children and how Aviva Tackling Numbers is working hard to improve numeracy and get more children active through tag rugby sessions.
Mark Pawsey MP, of the All Party Parliamentary Rugby Union Group, said: “Aviva Tackling Numbers is an example of how sport can help address important educational challenges, like financial literacy, and make a difference to young people’s lives. I applaud the work of the Premiership Rugby clubs and Aviva in developing and delivering this programme which is producing such great results.”
John Lister, Chief Finance Officer, Aviva UK&I Life and Group Business Development Officer, said: “It’s been a brilliant first year for the Aviva Tackling Numbers programme, reaching 13,500 children in 265 schools. The positive response from teachers and parents has been remarkable and highlights the importance of this scheme in providing children with a fun and exciting way to learn about numbers and get active. We look forward to continuing the project in the upcoming Aviva Premiership Rugby season.”
Mark McCafferty, CEO of Premiership Rugby, added: “The huge success of Aviva Tackling Numbers is a credit to our 12 clubs who deliver the programme in schools across the country, delivering a genuine legacy for rugby union in England.
“To see more than 13,000 children receive a first Aviva Tackling Numbers session in one season is a remarkable achievement and it is testament to the hard work of everyone associated with Aviva Tackling Numbers, our clubs and the teachers who have used the resources available. Today’s Parliamentary reception is the perfect way to celebrate its success so far and look ahead to growing the programme next season.”
Find out more about Aviva Tackling Numbers by visiting www.aviva.co.uk/tacklingnumbers.
-ENDS-
If you would like further information, please contact:
Will Mitchell, Synergy
T: +44 (0)203 128 6798
E: will.mitchell@synergy-sponsorship.com
Notes to Editors
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