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Nottingham Forest Community Trust’s Premier League Primary Stars coach, Isaac, has been working hard with Dami, a year 3 pupil at one of our partner schools, ever since he moved to the school back in September.

Now in its sixth year, Premier League Primary Stars (PLPS), a Premier League-funded programme, is designed to use the power of football to engage pupils in primary schools across the country.

Nottingham Forest Community Trust coaches have been delivering the programme since its launch and provide classroom support in key subjects such as English and Maths, and PE delivery, with sports ranging from football and cricket to athletics and dance to eighteen schools across the city and county.

Dami’s attitude towards PE has vastly improved, and teachers have noticed that he is much more focused in class since working with Isaac and engaging with the PLPS curriculum.

We caught up with Dami to talk about how PLPS and Isaac has helped him since his transition to a new primary school.

Dami said, “I’ve struggled concentrating since I moved schools, I’m still learning the language as I moved to the UK from Brazil when I was 5 and I’m now 8. Isaac has helped me since I’ve worked with him during PE, giving me confidence.”

Isaac added, “We haven’t been together for that long and at first, I felt he struggled with instructions and being told what to do. When we were going into team games, he wasn’t cooperating with other team members as he likes to be the best player.”

Dami went on to talk about why he likes helping Isaac out and he has to do, “I enjoy helping Isaac out because I become the captain of the class as I help the others out telling them what to do a bit like a coach. We do lots of sports like football, which is my favourite, basketball, gymnastics, and handball.”

“I’ve been helping Isaac by setting out the cones for lessons, picking groups and telling the others in class what to do. I asked to start helping Isaac so that I could be more involved.”

Isaac went on to explain how much Dami has improved, “As time went on, I gave him more of a leader role and he’s now helping his classmates. He’s setting an example as there’s a few students in his class who struggle to play team games and Dami was in that group at the start, but now he’s realised if he’s going to be helping me in the lesson he’s got to co-operate well in a team.”

“As Dami is only in year 3 and they have mixed year group classes, he is one of the youngest in his class as he’s mixed with year 4s which can be a struggle sometimes. Yet he keeps improving every week and he’s come on loads since the start.”

We hope that Dami will carry these lessons of teamwork, leadership, and listening into the classroom and outside of school, and that the Premier League Primary Stars programme and the ongoing guidance he receives from Isaac have a lasting impact.

For more information on our Premier League Primary Stars delivery, or to get involved with your School, email jordan.ferrer@nottinghamforest.co.uk